China's armed forces health department on Thursday published a
list of 16 bogus military medical institutions that peddled fake
drugs, in its latest attempt to crack down on drugs fraud.
"These bogus military institutions advertised fake drugs in
newspapers, magazines and on websites, posing a serious threat to
public health and to the image of the People's Liberation Army,"
according to the Health Department of the PLA General Logistics
Department.
These bogus institutions include: the so-called PLA Life
Sciences Genes Engineering Institute, the PLA Genetics Institute,
the PLA Air Force Genes Medical Institute, the PLA Dermatology
Genes Research Center, the PLA TCM Institute Dermatology
Department, the PLA Medical Institute Cardiology Research Center,
the PLA Life Sciences Institute Rheumatism Research Center, the PLA
General Logistics Hospital Dermatology Institute, the PLA Genetic
Sciences Institute, the PLA Biomedical Institute Diabetes Research
Center and Cardiology Research Center, the PLA Life Medicines and
Pathology Institute Diabetes Research Center, the PLA Research
Center for Difficult Diseases, China Genetic Pharmaceutical
Research Base Diabetes Hospital and the PLA Hongyu Pharmaceutical
Factory.
Genuine military medical institutions are prohibited by law from
advertising the sale of drugs.
"All drugs ads in the name of military institutions are
fraudulent," the department added.
Drugs commonly sold by these bogus military medical bodies
include those for the treatment of diabetes, cardiac diseases,
dermatitis and sexually transmitted diseases. They prey on patients
who are eager for a cure for these diseases, and tout the drugs to
be effective and even "magical".
The PLA health department and State Post Bureau have jointly
issued an order banning military medical institutions from setting
up post boxes in order to block possible mail-order channels.
In May, seven people were arrested for forging prescriptions,
seals and receipts. Drug labels purporting to have been issued by
military medical institutions were also seized. In addition, fake
drugs worth 150,000 yuan (US$18,750) were confiscated in the
largest bust of this kind.
A medicine that fake drugs dealers claimed could cure cardiac
diseases was sold for 780 yuan (US$98). Experts said the actual
cost of the drug was only 10 yuan (US$1.25).
The PLA General Logistics Department uncovered 98 military
medical fraud cases in 2005, and 67 so far this year.
(Xinhua News Agency July 28, 2006)