People who report cases of the production or sale of sham medicine may receive rewards up to 50,000 yuan (US$6,024), said sources from the State Food and Drug Administration (SFDA).

According to regulations issued by SFDA and the Ministry of Finance, after investigation of fake medicine production and marketing, drug administrations will pay a reward to informers.

The rewards, depending on how much solid evidence the informers hold and whether they assist in on-site inspections, are divided into three levels, based on a percentage of the value of the product confiscated.

The reward system will strike a hard blow at counterfeiters and encourage more people to report such crimes, said authorities.

(Xinhua News Agency December 19, 2003)