EU illicit trade in medicines could top €10.5bn, says survey

A survey funded by Pfizer has found that one in five Europeans have bought a prescription medicine from an illegal source, fuelling a market estimated at a massive €10.5bn.

The survey - entitled Cracking Counterfeit Europe - was initiated to uncover the scale of the counterfeit medicines problem in Europe, and establish why the public is buying prescription-only medicines from illicit sources.

It is believed to be the largest of its kind in Europe and polled almost 14,000 people, with 21 per cent indicating they had bought prescription-only drugs from illicit sources, mainly over the Internet.

That equates to 77 million people who are putting their health at risk by buying medicines that are outside the legitimate distribution channels.  Worryingly, 23 per cent of those polled did not acknowledge that taking drugs without a prescription is a risky activity.

Earlier research conducted by the European Alliance for Access to Safe Medicines (EAASM) has indicated that between 50 and 90 per cent of medicines bought online are fake.

According to the research, the main reasons people go online to access medicines is to save time and money, with 33 per cent of those surveyed doing so because the process is "quick and convenient" and 39 per cent saying they did so to save money.

Weight-loss products were among the most sought-after products, bought by 45 per cent of those surveyed who admitted to buying medicines from illicit sources. 

Flu treatments were also popular at 35 per cent - likely because of the swine flu pandemic - and as expected erectile dysfunction medicines featured highly at 25 per cent.  Smoking cessation and pain medications were also purchased in high volumes, both bought by 19 per cent of respondents.

Germany had the highest rate of online medicine purchasing without a prescription at 38 per cent, with Italy following closely at 37 per cent. At the other end of the scale, the Netherlands had the lowest penetration of illicit purchases, with 10 per cent of those surveyed admitting to them, followed by the UK and Finland at 12 per cent apiece.

The league table runs as follows:

"While the pharmaceutical industry works with health regulators, customs, law enforcement and trade organisations to uncover counterfeiters and bring them to trial, this report uncovers the sheer size of the problem and the reasons why people continue to fuel the market," said Pfizer in a statement.