Article originally published in PLC Life Sciences Handbook 2009/2010

With sales of counterfeit pharmaceuticals predicted to increase at nearly twice the rate of sales of legitimate products, it is not surprising that tackling pharmaceutical crime is high on the agendas of both global policymakers and pharmaceutical manufacturers. The US-based Center for Medicine in the Public Interest estimates that in 2010 alone counterfeit medicine commerce will generate US$75 billion (about EUR51.2 billion) in revenues – a 92% increase from 2005. Worryingly for patients, it is anticipated that many of these counterfeits will come through the legal supply chain.

Against that background, this chapter considers:

• „The global trends in pharmaceutical crime.
• Various policy-related initiatives that are being advanced to fight pharmaceutical crime. In particular, this chapter covers:
  • „multinational initiatives;
  • „initiatives from the EC.
• The responses of policymakers at the multinational, national and industry level to the particular problems raised by the internet.
• New technologies which may assist in tackling pharmaceutical crime.

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