Safe Medicines in the United States aren't a Guarantee

By: Brandon M. Macsata, CEO, ADAP Advocacy Association

In 2019, prescriptions medicines in the United States are not immune from the increasing dangers associated with counterfeit drugs. In fact, it can be a serious issue. Dating back to the start of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the United States, it is an issue that has also resulted in Black Market HIV/AIDS prescription medicines falling into the unknowing hands of HIV-positive consumers. Therefore, raising awareness about counterfeit drugs and the dangers associated with drug importation is an issue the ADAP Advocacy Association takes very seriously.

On January 31st, we are proud to sponsor a series of Congressional Briefings on counterfeit medications — which are being hosted by The Partnership for Safe Medicines ("PSM"). It is an issue that has impacted me, personally, and why I penned an Op-Ed in the Washington Blade last year on the inherent dangers (Drug importation policy is a hard pill to swallow).

I ordered medications from an online Canadian pharmacy. To this day, I have no way of knowing where the drugs were made or if they contained the active ingredients I needed to effectively treat my condition.

Counterfeit medications affect all patients: patients with acute diagnoses, patients with chronic conditions, and patients with immunodeficiency. A patient who has an acute bacterial infection needs a legitimate antibiotic with a proper dose to kill the bacteria and is endangered by the rebounding infection caused by a counterfeit that is beneath sufficient dosage. A patient with a chronic condition who needs maintenance medications may weaken and worsen if their maintenance meds are substandard in dosage. Patients with immunodeficiency may end up with serious additional infections if medications they take have not been sourced and stored in sterile conditions.

HIV patients may suffer all of these things at the hands of unscrupulous drug counterfeiters. Come to PSM's Congressional Briefings to hear the stories of counterfeit medicine victims, including an HIV patient, who received counterfeit drugs that impacted his health. Upcoming legislation proposals to bypass the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's safety protocols and import medicine from foreign sources that can neither be verified nor regulated will have profound affect upon all of the populations of patients who depend upon safe, accurate medicine to maintain their health.

Photo Source: Community Access National Network

Black Market HIV/AIDS prescription drugs have been in the news for many years. In fact, several years ago PSM published an important report in collaboration with the Community Access National Network ("CANN"). The PSM-CANN report outlined numerous instances of counterfeit drugs in the HIV/AIDS drug supply change between 2006 and 2013. Download the report online.

Register today to attend either the free House breakfast event at 9 a.m., or the free Senate lunch event at 12 p.m., on January 31, 2019 in Washington, DC.