USP and Other Organizations Unite in Campaign to Raise Awareness of Counterfeit Medicines

Global health organizations have joined forces to raise awareness of the global problem of counterfeit medicines through the “Fight the Fakes” campaign, which encourages organizations and individuals around the world to help spread the word about this vital public health issue. The campaign raises awareness about the dangers of counterfeit medicines by giving a voice to those who have been personally impacted and by sharing the stories of those working to put a stop to this threat to public health, the campaign said in a press release.

Counterfeit and substandard medicines are a global health crisis, spread across an international marketplace for pharmaceuticals and their ingredients, which demands a cooperative solution, the US Pharmacopeial Convention (USP) said in press release. USP joined the campaign in a concerted effort to help protect people from counterfeit medicines.

USP is actively involved in other ongoing initiatives to help ensure the quality of medicines, USP said in the press release. The Promoting the Quality of Medicines (PQM) program-implemented by USP and funded by the US Agency for International Development (USAID)-has been instrumental in addressing this significant public health challenge. PQM works to provide technical leadership and build local capacity to regulate and control the quality of medicines in developing countries, increase the supply of quality-assured medicines, combat the availability of substandard and counterfeit medicines, and advocate for worldwide quality standards. In May 2013, USP launched the Center for Pharmaceutical Advancement and Training in Accra, Ghana in an effort to increase the number of experts and available tools to combat falsified, substandard, and counterfeit medicines in countries in Sub-Saharan Africa.

In addition to USP, “Fight the Fakes” campaign partner organizations include the World Medical Association, the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers and Associations, the International Institute of Research Against Counterfeit Medicines, and others.