On December 2, 2021, the Council of Europe Convention on counterfeiting of medical products and similar crimes involving threats to public health (MEDICRIME Convention) marks its 10th anniversary.
Representatives of the State Service of Ukraine on Medicines and Drugs Control joined the event at which the speakers took a background tour, demonstrated a history of success and outlined the unprecedented challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic, which led to a significant increase in demand for medicines and medical devices.
The Convention is the legislative basis for cooperation between health, law-enforcement and customs authorities at the national and international levels, taking measures to combat crime, effective prosecution of perpetrators and protection of victims and witnesses.
“While the problems that the MEDICRIME Convention was intended to combat are still greater today than 10 years ago, the treaty’s ability to tackle these crimes is stronger than ever. I call on governments in Europe and other countries worldwide to take advantage of this anniversary and consider the safety and security gains which ratifying the treaty offers citizens. With every additional country that signs up to the Convention, a fresh blow is struck against crime, including organized crime,” said Council of Europe Secretary General, Marija Pejčinović Burić, ahead of the event.
The Convention has been so far ratified by 18 countries and signed by 18 others, four of which are not members of the Council of Europe (Belarus, Benin, Burkina Faso and Guinea), and two have been offered accession (Congo, Tunisia).
In April 2021, the MEDICRIME Committee announced measures to prevent and combat the circulation of counterfeit vaccines. In 2020, Recommendations for Governments were issued with warnings about the risks associated with the sale of counterfeit medical devices in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic, and a call for the use of the provisions of the Convention to protect public health and combat crime, including criminal networks taking advantage of gaps in health systems and the current crisis.