Chief Pharmaceutical Inspectorate

Prescription drugs can only be bought in stationary pharmacies. All other sources are illegal and pose a serious threat to health - emphasise the Ministry of Health, the Chief Pharmaceutical Inspectorate, the Polish Police Headquarters and the Polish Anti-Doping Agency in a social campaign aimed at making Poles aware of the risks associated with buying drugs from unknown sources. The campaign's ambassadors are outstanding sportswomen - speed skater Luiza Złotkowska, Olympic vice-champion from Sochi and bronze medallist from Vancouver, and canoeist Justyna Iskrzycka - bronze medallist of the Tokyo Games.

The partners of the campaign, the Ministry of Health, the Chief Pharmaceutical Inspectorate, the Police Headquarters and the Polish Anti-Doping Agency, emphasise that we can buy prescription drugs only in stationary pharmacies - all other sources are illegal and carry a high risk for us. On the other hand, non-prescription medicines are also available in registered online pharmacies, and to a limited extent in gas stations and shops.

According to the World Health Organization, counterfeit medicines do not contain any active pharmacological substance (32%), have the wrong amount of active substance (20%) or the wrong active substance (21%), are in the wrong packaging (16%), have contamination (9%) or are copies of the original product (1%).

It should be emphasized that original medicines sold outside the legal distribution channel, e.g. stolen, smuggled or "home stockpiled" are also treated as counterfeit medicines.

– 50% of medicines available on the Internet are counterfeit, and of the prescription medicines sold illegally, over 90% are fake. This most often concerns antidiabetic, anabolic, weight loss, contraceptive and even anticancer and cardiological medicines. We monitor the Internet and, together with the Police, we manage to close down illegal drug dumps, the turnover of which ranges from a dozen to several dozen million złoty per year. Only the official costs caused by adverse drug reactions and overdoses amount to around PLN 90 million per year – that is around 26 thousand hospitalizations. This shows that patients are not sufficiently aware that buying medicines online is playing with death – said Łukasz Pietrzak, Chief Pharmaceutical Inspector.

A particular group at risk of contact with counterfeit medicines are athletes and people practicing sports, tempted by "miracle" products that will help them achieve the best possible form.

– The health safety of professional athletes and physically active people is the highest priority for organizations involved in the fight against doping in sports. It is important to pay attention to the dangers associated with the use of medicines of unknown origin and which may contain substances prohibited in sports. For professional athletes, the use of such products may be associated not only with loss of health or even life, but also with image and legal consequences if anti-doping regulations are violated - indicated Michał Rynkowski, Director of the Polish Anti-Doping Agency.

The counterfeiting and sale of these medicines takes place all over the world. In 2023, Interpol conducted an operation in 89 countries targeting counterfeit traders. The actions resulted in 325 initiated investigations, and 1300 websites were closed. The value of the seized counterfeit medicines reached $7 million.

Traders of counterfeit medicines are criminals. The best way to fight illegal sellers is to stop buying and report the suspicious website to the authorities or institutions responsible for public safety. Let's not rob ourselves of our health.

Th taking action to eliminate counterfeit medicinal products from the market and are apprehending perpetrators of crimes who produce counterfeit medicines and introduce them illegally into circulation. This type of crime is combated by officers from departments combating economic and drug crime, as well as officers from the Central Bureau of Investigation of the Police specializing in combating organized crime groups and officers who fight cybercrime.

In combating illegal trade in medicinal products, the Police primarily focuses its activities on identifying and disclosing places of illegal production and storage of medicines, and also monitors websites through which criminals introduce counterfeit medicinal products into circulation. In the area of ​​international activities, the Police annually participates in the Interpol-coordinated Operation "Pangea" and the Europol-coordinated Operation "Shield" aimed at illegal online trade in counterfeit medicinal products. Statistical data indicate that in 2024, the Police initiated 532 preparatory proceedings, which means an increase of 121 cases compared to 2023. In 2024, 670 crimes were recorded in the area of ​​pharmaceutical crime, which means an increase of 92 compared to 2023 (Economic Crime Combating Bureau of the Police Headquarters).

The campaign "Don't rob yourself of your health. Fake medicines are a real threat" is being conducted in the social media of the Ministry of Health, the Chief Pharmaceutical Inspectorate, the Police and POLADA. The campaign's ambassadors are sportswomen - speed skater Luiza Złotkowska, Olympic vice-champion from Sochi and bronze medalist at the Vancouver Games, and canoeist Justyna Iskrzycka, bronze medalist at the Tokyo Games. A guide to safe medicine purchases has been published on the websites of the campaign's partners.