How Counterfeit Medicines Are Impacting the Indian Economy and the Pharmaceutical Industry

The problem of fake drugs is a very sensitive matter that is dangerous to the health of the masses and also is very costly to the Indian economy and the pharmaceutical industry. This article talks about the economic effects of dealing with fake medicines in India. We also give a detailed breakup of the danger it poses to public health and look at some reasonable measures to enable consumers to identify and avoid buying them.

What is the economic impact of counterfeit medicines?

The fake medicine business is a leading cause of a downfalling economic effect. According to one of the recent publications by OPPI, the nefarious drug market in India is estimated at around $4.25 billion, accounting for nearly 20% of the domestic market circulation. This illegal trade is leading to revenue loss for law-abiding manufacturers and an increased healthcare cost for public due to its treatment outcomes.

It mainly causes three factors to be affected the most:

1. Manufactured counterfeit medications frequently lead to ineffective treatment outcomes, forcing a patient to take them for longer or to re-treat. Therefore, imposing this on individuals and their families will incur great financial strain, as will the public health systems and insurance providers.

2. India is popularly called the “pharmacy of the world” because it is the major producer of generic drugs. Counterfeit products for these medicines can impair the reputation of the concerned country and damage trust between international trading partners, which in turn will reduce exports.

3. Apart from the economic consequences of fake medicines, the health risks associated with them are obviously very serious. These medications may be made of wrong ingredients, have the wrong doses, or be toxic to people, so they may cause severe health problems, treatment failures, and even death for the patients.

Regulatory measures in controlling the inflow of fake drugs

A state/federal government can curtail the counterfeit drug trade by introducing strict control and tougher penalties. The CDSCO (Central Drugs Standard Control Organization), which continuously refreshes the list of spurious drugs, remains the initiating authority whose actions, such as raiding and carrying out more inspections at production units and pharmacies alike, have been the motive behind these actions.

1. Increased Inspections: The production departments of the pharmaceuticals, therefore, become an easy target of multiple subject checks upon the reported public failure by the authorities. The reasons for these inspections are to find out if the companies are really adhering to the safety and quality policies and regulations that will completely stop the production of the counterfeit ones.

2. Use of Blockchain Technology: To be frank, frequent use of technology in the medicine supply chain is gaining more and more popularity among pharmaceutical companies, who prefer it to make the manufacturing process more efficient. Blockchain-based distributed ledger system registers all parties to maintain their own records, thereby every party independently verifies the authenticity of the drug, and the blockchain alters the system in a way that no one retroactively changes can be done.

3. Deployment of QR Codes: Few have applied QR codes to the medicine package so that buyers can also claim the products’ validity. By product tracking number, origin, batch number, and expiration date, scannable codes may be used, so both consumers and producers can be sure that the products they sell and buy are not counterfeit.

4. Reduced Incidence of Counterfeit Drugs: Curiously facinating are the emergence of technologies and operations that are completely lasted with it while the idea itself is also the essence. Thanks to the publicity of the fake pills misuse, you are actually doing a good job in reducing the negative impacts of the needs on customers.

5. Public and Industry Collaboration: Many parties involved in the production of medicated drugs and healthcare – the government, pharmaceutical companies, and the public – are now uniting their resources to attain the end goal of all collectively.

Education forms the foundation of our strategy that provides people with the knowledge of how to identify an authentic product from a counterfeit one and how to understand the difference between authentic products and fake products. Also, the manufacturers of the pharmaceuticals are encouraged to use the latest technologies and innovations by the same for just making their supply chain of medicines safer and more reliable.

Top 4 tips that will help you identify and avoid counterfeit products

If you are looking to purchase a medicine, be it online or offline, make sure to check the following things before you go ahead with the purchase:

Purchase from Reputable Sources

Always make sure to get your medicines from licensed pharmacies and recognized retailers. These drug retailers have to adhere to strict regulatory guidelines that guarantee that the drugs are of the correct standard and purity. Authorised vendors and genuine online pharmacies, as compared with unlicensed and fake ones, typically are guided by their own regulations that prohibit distribuion of counterfeit goods. Thus, the credibility of the source should be checked prior to the purchase.

Check Packaging

Taking a minute to scout for any indication of tampering is an important precaution. Seek for broken seals, misprints in the packaging design, or discrepancies in fonts different from what is commonly used by the manufacturer. Make sure that all the data on the label, including the drug name, dosage instructions, expiry date, and manufacturer details, are readable and accurate. Disparities in good packaging are a signal red and could show you fake items.

Verify with Technology

Employ technology to ensure the credibility of your medication. Today, most pharmaceutical companies provide their goods with mobile-scannable QR codes. These scans disclose essential information on the drug’s place of production, batch number, and actual existence in consumers’ hands, acting as a digital signature of the manufacturing source. Further, this part is becoming the most vital as more and more people need to be sure that they buy absolutely real and safe-to-use medicine.

Educate Yourself

It is important to have knowledge about any meds that you are currently using. Know that the medication you were prescribed is (color, size, shape, and texture); its side effects, when and how to take the drug, in fighting your type of disease. This knowledge may help you to notice if the medication you receive is not exactly as it should be. A good start could perhaps be to know what the most counterfeit drugs in the market are. Furthermore, this information could make you more vigilant.

MrMed.in stands out as a beacon of trust and reliability in the pharmaceutical industry. It is committed to providing genuine cancer medicine and other life-saving medicines to patients across India. In the battle against counterfeit drugs, MrMed.in plays a crucial role by ensuring that all medicines are sourced from verified and accredited manufacturers only.

The quality assurance processes and stringent verification protocols are designed to eliminate the risk of counterfeit products entering the supply chain. Leveraging advanced technologies like QR codes and blockchain, the super speciality pharmacy enhances transparency and traceability, enabling consumers to verify the authenticity of their medicines easily.