Fake COVID-19 Treatment from Vietnam Found in Switzerland... Vietnamese Drug Authorities Investigating

COVID-19 oral antiviral drug 'Molnupiravir' developed by American pharmaceutical company Merck & Company (MSD) [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Sumi] It has been reported that fake COVID-19 treatment drugs labeled as Vietnamese products have been found overseas.

According to local media VN Express on the 7th, the Vietnamese Drug Administration recently confirmed that oral COVID-19 treatment drug Molnupiravir labeled as Vietnamese product, discovered in Switzerland, was finally determined to be counterfeit.

Molnupiravir, developed by the American pharmaceutical company Merck & Company (MSD), is an RNA analog that induces virus death by being inserted instead of RNA during the replication process of the COVID-19 virus. The treatment is administered twice daily for five days per patient.

The Vietnamese Drug Administration has begun investigating the source and production site of the fake treatment drug. It also instructed local provincial health departments to post information about the treatment drug on their websites.

The fake treatment drug was discovered during the World Health Organization (WHO)'s collection and investigation of Molnupiravir labeled as Vietnamese product in Switzerland. According to WHO at the time, the drug was confirmed to contain no active ingredients. The label attached to the drug container reportedly stated that it was produced in Binh Duong Province in southern Vietnam.

Vietnam received production approval for the COVID-19 treatment drug from MSD in November last year. Since then, three local pharmaceutical companies have been producing and supplying generic versions of Molnupiravir.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.