NewsMax.com
Tuesday, Sept. 20, 2005

"The business of selling fake prescription drugs to unsuspecting consumers is burgeoning, and is a global industry," said Peter Pitts, Director of the Center for Medicines in the Public Interest (CMPI), which issued the report.

"Nearly $39 billion, or 11 percent of global pharmaceutical commerce, will be counterfeit this year.

"By 2010, the number will nearly double."

The report estimates that counterfeit drug sales will grow 13 percent annually through 2010, compared to an estimated 7.5 percent yearly growth for global pharmaceutical sales.

Many of the counterfeit products contain ingredients that could be harmful, and are coming from illegal operations that often use phony, fly-by-night Web sites, according to the CMPI.

"The increasing flow of counterfeit drugs represents a significant public health threat," said Dr. Scott Gottlieb, Deputy Commissioner for Medical and Scientific Affairs at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. "We must step up our efforts to safeguard the drug supply. We certainly should not weaken those controls."

The CMPI said that counterfeit drugs are not only extremely dangerous and often lethal, but they also are a potential source of funding for terrorists.

The CMPI is a clearinghouse for information on the development, accessibility and safety of pharmaceuticals.

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