There is a mad race for face masks as people are getting panicked over the swine flu outbreak. It?s more an accepted fact that N95 green masks, which used to cost Rs 125, to be worn for eight hours only, now cost Rs 1,200.
But here is another cause to worry. There are fake Oseltamivir Phosphate drugs, used for treating H1N1 flu, in the market. The package resembles the original having the name Oseltamivir too but the chemical composition can be the combination of only sugar and starch.
Highly-placed government sources said that these were not manufactured in India but could have been imported from the nearby countries. It is learnt that the Chennai drug controller office seized a consignment last week of such fake Oseltamivir drugs. These were ?look-alikes? of the original product and initial investigations have revealed that they were not Tamiflu but just had Oseltamivir name on the packs.
Says M Srinivas Reddy, director, Marketing, Hetero Drugs, ?In order to take precautionary measures or due to adoption of self medication practice, people have started to hoard stocks. Hetero Drugs, which has received the licensing rights from Roche to manufacture and supply the Oseltamivir in India, is the first pharma company in India which has made available pediatric oral suspension powder as well.
With the death toll touching 54 till date among 2,669 cases nationwide, the hoarding business for swine flu drug, is increasing. Though there is no short supply, there is a demand in the open market and stock piling of this drug is becoming a cause of worry among the regulating agencies, he said.
Sources said that the cost of the fakes is about Rs 3,000 for 10 capsules as against Rs 350 for the same quantity. As Reddy puts it, hoarding of medicines is due to the restricted sale of this drug. The sale of fakes in the market can be put to rest when the retail sale is permitted, he added. Incidentally, the government is also mulling to put this drug under Schedule X for a regulated sale in select stores and would permit retail marketing in the next 10-15 days.
Another reason attributed to hoarding is that there is a panicky situation since there is no 24/7 access for patients to the designated testing centres and hence hoarding or stock piling seems to be a safe bet. According to sources, officials from private intelligence agencies, drug controllers across the states, customs and excise authorities including the anti-terrorism squad, have been alerted for smuggling of Oseltamivir.