Volume 1 Number 2 Friday, January 24, 2003	Page 52
ISSN 1542-9555
State News
Florida Court Grants Petition for Grand Jury To Probe Counterfeit Pharmaceuticals

TAMPA, Fla.--A statewide grand jury will be empanelled to investigate the diversion and counterfeiting of expensive prescription drugs, under a Jan. 15 order by the Florida Supreme Court (In re Statewide Grand Jury Petition, Fla., No. SC02-2645, order issued 1/15/03).

The court’s action granted a petition filed in December 2002 by Florida Gov. Jeb Bush (R), who requested a statewide investigation into a "pattern of organized crimes" involving the theft and diversion of "high-end" pharmaceutical drugs as well as illegal re-labeling of stolen or diverted drugs.

Also likely to be examined will be warehousing of stolen or diverted drugs at unlicensed facilities and the sale of counterfeit drugs.

The petition to the court came after the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, the Department of Health, and the Agency for Heath Care Administration expressed concerns about the problems, especially in South Florida, Bush said.

Protecting Citizens

The alleged activities were occurring primarily in Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties, Bush said in announcing his request.

"Our first concern is to protect our citizens by ensuring the safety and effectiveness of prescription drugs distributed in our state," Bush said in a Dec. 20, 2002, written statement.

"Law enforcement and health officials are witnessing a troubling criminal trend, particularly in South Florida, related to high-end prescription drugs," the governor continued. "Florida's citizens are being victimized by these schemes of fraud. It is imperative that a complete and thorough look at these criminal activities begin immediately."

Under the court’s order, the Statewide Prosecutor's Office is to serve as the legal adviser to the grand jury, which will sit for a 12-month term.

FDLE special agency supervisor Michael Mann told BNA Jan. 16 that the state's investigation into counterfeit and diverted pharmaceuticals began in January 2002 on a tip by a confidential informant and that the probe will focus on both companies and groups of individuals.

He said investigators are interested in the state's active secondary wholesale market and how expensive drugs to treat cancer, HIV, and other serious illnesses are being handled.

"The fact that this market exists creates a place where counterfeiting can be introduced," Mann said. "It also creates a place where diverted drugs can be sold and resold and then resold back to the end user."

While counterfeit and mislabeled drugs pose obvious hazards to patients, the efficacy of name-brand pharmaceuticals that have been diverted also can be adversely compromised when mishandled--such as being stored in an automobile trunk in Florida's hot climate, Mann said.

'No Quality Control.'

"There is no quality control. These are thieves," Mann said, adding that the medications normally are not stored under tight security in hospitals, clinics, and other health facilities because they hold no potential for abuse, as do narcotics and other controlled substances.

"A lot of them get diverted or stolen and end up on the black market," Mann said.

The FDLE, and other law enforcement agencies, as well as health care regulators, plan to pursue legislation that would stiffen penalties for counterfeit and diverted drug crimes, he said. Currently, prosecutors use racketeering and other statutes--such as engaging in a continuing criminal enterprise--to try to win tougher sentences for convicted defendants.

By Drew Douglas

Copyright © 2003 by The Bureau of National Affairs, Inc., Washington D.C.