GSK reports asthma inhalers stolen

GlaxoSmithKline is the latest pharmaceutical manufacturer to be hit by cargo thieves, with more than 25,000 of its Advair asthma inhalers stolen from a distribution facility in the US.

In a statement, GSK said that “medicine in the stolen cartons could represent a health risk because it has been removed from the legitimate supply chain and the storage conditions under which the stolen products were held are unknown.”

The value of the shipment is estimated at around $5m. Advair - which is sold under the Seretide brandname in some markets - is GSK’s top-selling product with sales of £2.5bn ($4.1bn) in the first six months of 2009.

The theft of two lots of the Advair Diskus (fluticasone propionate and salmeterol) dry powder inhalers took place on August 2 at a warehousing unit operated by a third-party company in Richmond, Virginia, while the goods were awaiting distribution to retail pharmacies.

According to industry sources, the burglars’ entry point was the facility’s roof-top, and methodology used is "consistent with that used by the organised cargo theft groups operating out of Southern Florida."

 The affected lots are as follows:

• Lot 9ZP2255 - NDC 0173-0696-00, Advair Diskus 250/50, 60 Dose (14,400 inhalers)
• Lot 9ZP3325 - NDC 0173-0697-00, Advair Diskus 500/50, 60 Dose (11,200 inhalers)

GSK said that no portion of this stock had ever entered the legitimate supply chain, so inhalers from these lots should not be dispensed, sold, or used.

A proportion of the products taken were actually samples, so any attempt to illicitly repackage the material for subsequent sale could lead to the disposal of a lot of packaging materials. Law enforcement agencies should keep any eye out for sizeable volumes of discarded packaging materials.

Meanwhile, in other US cargo theft news:

• A container truck full of vitamins and dietary supplements stolen on August 13 in Florida from healthcare distributor NBTY has been recovered complete and intact. An arrest was made on August 19.
  
  
• A theft of infant formula and liquid children’s vitamins took place in Effingham, Illinois, on July 30. The trailer (empty) and tractor have since been recovered.
  
  
• Blood thinning and nasal allergy products were stolen in Temple, Georgia on July 9. The trailer was recovered (empty) on July 30 in Florida but the tractor and cargo remain at large.