health

Drugs to be scrutinized

LA PRENSA

Rodrigo Esquivel 986714

Health authorities are on alert for counterfeit and bootlegged prescription drugs that are being brought into the country.

Ministra de Salud Rosario Turner met yesterday with Attorney General Ana Matilde Gómez, the head of the Policía Técnica Judicial José Ayú Prado and the Fiscal de Delitos Contra la Propiedad Intelectual Rodrigo Esquivel to work on a plan to address the problem.

Esquivel said there have been eight such cases recently, including one where an Australian citizen was fined for bringing a shipment of bootlegged Viagra tablets into the country.

Turner said that Panama needed to increase its border security to ensure that such shipments are not brought into the country.

Esquivel said there have been no reports of counterfeit drugs being produced here and that all the cases revolve around drugs produced in other countries, then brought here for distribution.

In addition to the Viagra shipment, the counterfeit drugs that have been confiscated are aspirin and other painkillers.

Eight people have been charged in those cases so far, Esquivel reported.

The unlicensed drugs are not believed to have posed a health risk. The Viagra pills, however, contained a higher dose than is typically recommended, which could have caused health issues.