Faced with the complicated developments of fake drugs and drugs of unknown origin in the market, the Ha Tinh Department of Health has established a hotline to receive information about fake drugs, smuggled drugs, and drugs of unknown origin in the province, with phone number: 0965.341.616.
Previously, the Hai Phong City Department of Health also established a hotline phone number 0967.771,515 for the same purpose as Ha Tinh.
These moves from localities, stemming from the incident in which Thanh Hoa Provincial Police have just dismantled a large-scale counterfeit drug production and trading ring nationwide.
The production and trading of counterfeit drugs cannot be considered a simple act of economic fraud, but a form of particularly serious crime, with direct consequences affecting the health and lives of people, especially vulnerable patients.
Unlike many other consumer products, medicine is not simply for sale, but is a vital factor in treatment and health recovery. A fake drug can cause patients to lose the chance to cure the disease, even die if poisoned or misused.
Therefore, fake drugs not only violate the law, but also seriously violate the right to health care, a basic right of each person.
In reality, the drug control system at the grassroots level still has many shortcomings. The monitoring of drug origin and quality depends largely on the awareness and technical conditions of retail establishments, while the specialized inspection force is still thin, the post-inspection process is not coverage and speed enough.
Therefore, the proactive participation of the Ha Tinh and Hai Phong Departments of Health in establishing hotlines is a positive signal that needs to be replicated.
However, in the "war" against fake drugs, smuggled drugs, and drugs of unknown origin is very complicated, the initiative of each health sector such as in Ha Tinh or Hai Phong is still not enough.
This "war" requires synchronous coordination between health care, police, market management, local authorities and especially the vigilance of the people.
Just like fighting counterfeit goods and dirty food, controlling counterfeit drugs is only really effective when the whole society participates.
Not only stopping at administrative or criminal penalties, cases of intentional import of counterfeit drugs, scattered when discovered, counterfeiting drugs, the authorities must go to the same network and the responsibility of the people involved.
Suppliers and pharmaceutical enterprises must be serious in choosing partners, not ignore violations for profit. Pharmacies must take the highest responsibility for the products they sell.
Testing agencies need to increase resources to promptly detect and handle suspicious products. And people need to be encouraged and protected when reporting suspicious information.
Counterfeit drugs not only poison the human body, but also "poison" people's trust. Therefore, fighting fake drugs is not simply to protect public health, but more deeply, it is to protect trust in the health system and social justice.
No one should and should be left out in the battle to protect the people's right to live safely, including themselves.
