Drug administrations at all levels in China uncovered 496 million yuan (US$60 million) worth of counterfeit drugs and destroyed 994 manufacturing or distributing units in 2003, said a senior official here Thursday.

Speaking at a press conference, Zheng Xiaoyu, director of the State Food and Drug Administration (SFDA), said the Chinese government always attaches great importance to combating counterfeit medicines.

Since 2003, in order to further rectify and regulate the order of the pharmaceutical market and crack down on the illegal activities concerning counterfeit drugs and medical devices, the State Council has carried out the "Safe Food and Drug Campaign".

Zheng said that due to the effective combat against counterfeit drugs, in 2003, the acceptance rate of drugs nationwide was 97.1 percent, the fourth consecutive year of the rate of 95 percent or above.

The SFDA will continue its effort this year on fighting counterfeit drugs, Zheng noted. Besides regulating the market for traditional Chinese medicines, the SFDA will also carry out special campaigns to regulate the vaccines and biological products, set up a distribution channel for narcotics and psychotropics at the grass-roots level, fight counterfeit Tibetan drugs and medical devices without required certificates, and step up the sampling, testing and inspection systems.

(Xinhua News Agency May 28, 2004)