FDA Sends Warning Letters to Website Operators Distributing Unapproved Drugs and Medical Devices on the Internet

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) sent warning letters to more than 1,050 website operators that distribute unapproved drugs and medical devices after seizing stashes of the potentially dangerous products at international mail facilities in three states, the agency announced Thursday.

Unapproved drugs and medical devices were seized from international mail facilities in Chicago, Miami and New York by federal inspectors from the FDA and other agencies. Those drugs included products being sold as generic versions of Nolvadex, Meridia, Valium, Truvada and Advair Diskus. The unapproved medical devices included colon care products and dermal fillers, the FDA said in a statement viewed by Fox News.

“Our efforts to protect the health of American patients by preventing the online sale of potentially dangerous illegal medical products will not cease,” said George Karavetsos, director of the FDA’s Office of Criminal Investigations, according to HealthDay.

This operation “provides yet another avenue for the FDA to engage with our international law enforcement partners on these critical issues,” Karavetsos said.

“We are not only pleased to be a part of this strong international enforcement effort, but resolved to do everything we can to ensure that the global problem of illegal Internet drug and device sales is deterred as a result,” he added.

The unapproved products can be dangerous to consumers’ health and put them at risk of credit card fraud, identity theft and computer viruses, the FDA warned. The seizures were part of the INTERPOL-led International Internet Week of Action (IIWA), designed to battle the unlawful sale and distribution of illegal and counterfeit medical products, Fox News reports.

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