VOA标准英语2010年-Counterfeit Medicines Grow as Global T

New technology makes it easier to authenticate¹ medication. Patient would scratch panel - just like a lottery² ticket with number on the drug - each drug has a different number. Patient sends a text message with the number, and get a response instantly at the counter if the drug is genuine or fake.

 

Last month, representatives from all over the world discussed the dangers posed by counterfeit³ medicines at the World Health Assembly in Geneva.  The problem is growing. The World Health Organization (WHO) warns that more than half of all medicines bought online are counterfeit. U.S. experts say there is no one solution. 

Last year, 84 infants died in Nigeria from tainted⁴ teething syrup⁵. More than 2,000 times last year, counterfeit medicines caused illness and death, according to the Pharmaceutical⁶ Security Institute, a watchdog group. That's an increase of more than nine percent over 2008.

Scott LaGanga, director of PhRMA, a leading pharmaceutical research and manufacturing company, says it's easy and profitable to sell look-alike, low quality drugs. "We are not all experts. And so we trust the supply chain to deliver the right product," he said. "In a lot of the parts of the developing world this trust could be broken and because it's become so profitable to distribute, sell, manufacture, a lot of these products that are of low quality, and substandard."

 

The production and sale of counterfeit drugs are a problem for both rich and poor countries. 

WHO says in rich countries, counterfeit drugs typically involve hormones⁷, steroids, and anti-cancer medications. 

But in developing countries, especially Africa, patients buy medicines -- often counterfeit --  to treat life threatening diseases like malaria⁸, tuberculosis⁹, and HIV/AIDS.  And those diseases could worsen quickly with substandard or bogus medications.

Ashifi Gogo heads a company that protects consumers against counterfeiters. He says Nigeria's government is fighting back with mobile phone technology that the company developed. "We have developed a technology which makes it easy for consumers to authenticate medication at the point of purchase. There is a scratch panel - just like a lottery ticket with number on the drug - each drug has a different number. When you buy a drug, you scratch the panel, you send a text message with the number that you see, and you get a response instantly at the counter if the drug is genuine or fake," he explained.

WHO reports that although counterfeit drugs are sold globally, rich countries are better at policing and preventing sales.

LaGanga says combating these drugs is all the more difficult because some countries lack tough laws.  "If one country makes an immense step forward, even like the U.S. has done over the years with a very strong regulatory agency like FDA, with very good law enforcement in place, with good coordination¹⁰ around the world, it's not sufficient for the rest of the world. It's also not sufficient for those people who are into new mediums like online pharmacy¹¹ sphere," he stated.

Major manufacturers of generic¹² medications, in India and Brazil,  accuse the pharmaceutical industry of using the issue of counterfeiting¹³ to protect their patents.

But WHO says its issue is not intellectual property rights, but public health.

 

1 authenticate   

vt.证明…为真，鉴定

参考例句：

• We would have to authenticate your relationship with the boy.我们必须证实一下您和那个孩子的关系。
• An expert was needed to authenticate the original Van Gogh painting from his imitation.这幅画是凡·高的真迹还是赝品,需由专家来鉴定。

2 lottery   

n.抽彩；碰运气的事，难于算计的事

参考例句：

• He won no less than ￡5000 in the lottery.他居然中了5000英镑的奖券。
• They thought themselves lucky in the lottery of life.他们认为自己是变幻莫测的人生中的幸运者。

3 counterfeit   

vt.伪造，仿造；adj.伪造的，假冒的

参考例句：

• It is a crime to counterfeit money.伪造货币是犯罪行为。
• The painting looked old but was a recent counterfeit.这幅画看上去年代久远，实际是最近的一幅赝品。

4 tainted   

adj.腐坏的；污染的；沾污的；感染的v.使变质( taint的过去式和过去分词 )；使污染；败坏；被污染，腐坏，败坏

参考例句：

• The administration was tainted with scandal. 丑闻使得政府声名狼藉。
• He was considered tainted by association with the corrupt regime. 他因与腐败政府有牵连而名誉受损。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 syrup   

n.糖浆，糖水

参考例句：

• I skimmed the foam from the boiling syrup.我撇去了煮沸糖浆上的泡沫。
• Tinned fruit usually has a lot of syrup with it.罐头水果通常都有许多糖浆。

6 pharmaceutical   

adj.药学的，药物的；药用的，药剂师的

参考例句：

• She has donated money to establish a pharmaceutical laboratory.她捐款成立了一个药剂实验室。
• We are engaged in a legal tussle with a large pharmaceutical company.我们正同一家大制药公司闹法律纠纷。

7 hormones   

n. 荷尔蒙，激素 名词hormone的复数形式

参考例句：

• This hormone interacts closely with other hormones in the body. 这种荷尔蒙与体內其他荷尔蒙紧密地相互作用。
• The adrenals produce a large per cent of a man's sex hormones. 肾上腺分泌人体的大部分性激素。

8 malaria   

n.疟疾

参考例句：

• He had frequent attacks of malaria.他常患疟疾。
• Malaria is a kind of serious malady.疟疾是一种严重的疾病。

9 tuberculosis   

n.结核病，肺结核

参考例句：

• People used to go to special health spring to recover from tuberculosis.人们常去温泉疗养胜地治疗肺结核。
• Tuberculosis is a curable disease.肺结核是一种可治愈的病。

10 coordination   

n.协调，协作

参考例句：

• Gymnastics is a sport that requires a considerable level of coordination.体操是一项需要高协调性的运动。
• The perfect coordination of the dancers and singers added a rhythmic charm to the performance.舞蹈演员和歌手们配合得很好，使演出更具魅力。

11 pharmacy   

n.药房，药剂学，制药业，配药业，一批备用药品

参考例句：

• She works at the pharmacy.她在药房工作。
• Modern pharmacy has solved the problem of sleeplessness.现代制药学已经解决了失眠问题。

12 generic   

adj.一般的，普通的，共有的

参考例句：

• I usually buy generic clothes instead of name brands.我通常买普通的衣服，不买名牌。
• The generic woman appears to have an extraordinary faculty for swallowing the individual.一般妇女在婚后似乎有特别突出的抑制个性的能力。

13 counterfeiting   

n.伪造v.仿制，造假( counterfeit的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• He was sent to prison for counterfeiting five-dollar bills. 他因伪造5美元的钞票被捕入狱。 来自辞典例句
• National bureau released securities, certificates with security anti-counterfeiting paper technical standards. 国家质量技术监督局发布了证券、证件用安全性防伪纸张技术标准。 来自互联网