Source: Jornal do Commercio - PE, 21/07/2009

The body will now receive reports of counterfeit drugs, sold in pharmacies or over the internet. Action aims to reduce self-medication and exposure of patients to inadequate treatment

The inspection of the sale of medicines and dietary supplements in pharmacies and on the Internet gained strength with the participation of state and municipal Procons. Now, the agencies are also authorized to receive reports of counterfeit drugs, a task previously attributed only to health surveillance, police and the pharmaceutical sector. The order to close the siege to illegal trade came from the National Health Surveillance Agency (Anvisa) and the Department of Consumer Protection and Defense (DPDC) of the Ministry of Justice, which prepared a specific form to register suspicious cases. In the first four months of this year alone, Anvisa seized 12 batches of counterfeit products, equal to the quantity of 2008.
According to the general coordinator of Procon Pernambuco, José Rangel, despite the formalization of the new Anvisa process, complaints about fake medicines were already received by the entity. He states that, before purchasing any medicine, the consumer must, above all, be suspicious of very low prices and commercials for products on TV, radio and internet. "Be very suspicious and try to check the security marks," he says.

Among the guarantees of a reliable medicine are the registration number with the Ministry of Health, the name of the responsible pharmacist and registration with the Regional Pharmacy Council. It is also necessary to check the expiration date and if the package is crushed or with a broken seal.

As determined by Anvisa, the lot number (printed on the outside) is the same as the bottle or the internal card. Most of the drugs and supplements seized this year are for the treatment of impotence and sexual dysfunction, in addition to anabolics, steroids and aspirins.

On the internet, there are rain offers of herbs to lose weight and pills without effect, advertised to combat alcoholism, cholesterol, symptoms of menopause. According to Patrícia Amélia, manager of medicines and products control at Recife's Sanitary Surveillance, shopping on websites leads to the risk of self-medication.

"There are several drugs and supplements without registration, mainly on the internet, where you can find international products sold without Anvisa standards", he explains. She points out that counterfeiting drugs exposes patients to problems such as the absence of the expected effect, inadequate treatment, intoxication and even death.

The Physical Education teacher

Derval Rego, 29, who usually orders food and energy supplements online, knows the risks and comments on how to escape them. “Through the computer, you can find products with a better price and better quality than in some stores. Now, the ideal is to know beforehand what you want to acquire in order not to be deceived. Buying on trusted sites linked to major brands is a good way out. I follow these rules and I never had any problems ”, he says, adding that it is important to check the product label when receiving it.
Anvisa is also studying to include antibiotics and anti-inflammatory drugs in the list of drugs subject to special control, making sales of these items more difficult. The goal is to combat indiscriminate use. In addition to requiring the prescription, which will be retained, pharmacies will be required to collect prescription data. The recipe will be stamped to prevent new use. Stores that do not comply with the provision will be subject to punishment.

The agency also wants to restrict access to drugs for sale at pharmacies. The ideal, according to Anvisa, is that they be placed behind the counter. The measure wants to avoid self-medication and waste, as the consumer spends badly when buying medicine without guidance.

In case of suspected fraud, complaints can be sent to Anvisa, by Disque Saúde (0800-611-997). Another option is to notify the Health Surveillance of Recife (0800-281-1520).