Counterfeit medicines taken off the shelves

Urgent warnings have been issued after three fake medicines were found in suburban areas of the capital.

Beijing's municipal medication watchdog issued an urgent notice at the weekend to the city's pharmacies about household brands the cold medication Contac NT, the painkiller Fenbid and the antibiotic cefalexin.

The counterfeit drugs were discovered in an investigation by the Beijing Municipal Drug Administration that was carried out at two township-level hospitals and two village clinics in the districts of Changping and Fangshan.

Tests showed the medicines, which appear to be the same as the authentic ones, do not contain valid ingredients and do not meet the relevant national standards.

There are no reports that the fake ones did harm to people's health so far.

The batch numbers of the fake drugs are 04100672 for Contac NT, 04110509 for Fenbid, both of which are marked with the producer Tianjin Smith Kline&French Laboratories Ltd, and 0408091 for cefalexin allegedly made by the Beijing Taiyang Pharmaceutical Industry Co Ltd.

But the two companies have proved they never produced these batches, according to the drug administration.

Where they came from in the first place is still being investigated.

The administration has ordered all the city's drug sellers, including hospitals, clinics and drug stores, to be on the alert against the blacklisted batches, and immediately seal them up if they find them.

The manager of an outlet of Golden Elephant chain pharmacy, surnamed Geng, said his company received the administration's notice on Friday and had immediately taken measures against the three fake batches.

So far the pharmacy has not found any, Geng said.

Any of the batches discovered can be reported to the administration on 8397-9558 or 8397-9566.

Source: China Daily