Quacks targeted in crackdown on fake drugs in rural areas
Drug-distribution and monitoring networks will be set up in rural areas to stem the problem of fake and expired drugs, State Food and Drug Administration director-general Zheng Xiaoyu says.
Mr Zheng said quack doctors and unscrupulous peddlers were able to make huge profits selling fake and expired drugs in China's vast countryside. 'The main [problem] is that only a small variety of drugs are available in the countryside and they are expensive,' Mr Zheng said.
'In some rural areas, both fake and expired drugs are sold and that hurts the interest of the people.'
He admitted that in some areas, the problem was 'quite serious'.
Mr Zheng said the central government planned to set up distribution and monitoring networks so that the sales and marketing of drugs in rural areas could be more effectively monitored.
Under the proposed system, pharmaceutical companies would be invited to bid for franchises to sell drugs in rural areas. Successful bidders would be required to service not just accessible towns but also remote villages.