Counterfeiting in Reimport of Viread in the legal Supply Chain

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Counterfeit medicines in the legal supply chain are increasingly becoming a problem. Experts are sure that counterfeiters will try more and more to sell fake medicines not only via the Internet, but through "infiltrating" them into the legal supply chain - meaning pharmaceutical wholesalers and pharmacies.
 
Another case in a reimport became known now. The company of Gilead Sciences is the holder of the marketing authorisation of the HIV drug Viread (Tenofovir) in Germany. The importers Medicopharm and Axicorp (import to the German market) call back the batch 13VR039D because of obvious manipulations of the packaging. According to a press released published by the Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices in Germany: "The BfArM has received information that counterfeits of the centrally licensed medicinal product Viread 245 mg film-coated tablets are possibly on the market in Germany" 
 
Just recently the Italian authority AIFA had published their research on illegal and stolen medicines in parallel sales. Background is that end of March 2014 manipulated Herceptin from a theft in Italy was noticed at a parallel distributor in Germany. Thus, it became apparent that the theft is not an isolated case, but that medicines were repeatedly introduced illegally in the distribution chain in Italy. A press release on the German website of the (German) Paul Ehrlich Institute states: "Based on calculations more than 390 illegal transactions could be identified, partly again through multiple intermediaries. It is possible that there will be further findings of illegal drug supplies in the still ongoing investigations in Italy."