Home / Government / Central Government News Tools: Save | Print | E-mail | Most Read | Comment
Authorities tighten control of medication
Adjust font size:

China's top food and drug watchdog has tightened its control over narcotic and psychotropic drugs in a bid to safeguard public health and social security, an official said yesterday.

Yan Jiangyin, spokeswoman of the State Food and Drug Administration, said a homegrown nationwide monitoring network put into practice from September is monitoring in real time the production, supply, distribution, inventory and flow of these drugs.

Medicinal narcotic and psychotropic drugs - which include opium, heroin, morphine, marijuana and cocaine - are strictly controlled because of their potential for abuse.

"These drugs are a double-edged sword. If properly used they can assist in medical treatment to improve people's health," Gao Feng, director of the controlled drug inspection department of the SFDA, said.

Dolantin, a kind of narcotic drug, for instance, is usually prescribed to alleviate pain for cancer patients, Gao said.

It can be abused, he added, and this can lead to mental and physical problems, as well as damage public health and security.

Because of the monitoring network, the SFDA can now oversee the flow of narcotic and psychotropic drugs across the country, Yan said.

By linking drug supervision departments at different levels, drug producers and distributors nationwide, the network produces online, real time reports of production and sales data to the SFDA.

Since the beginning of this month, Yan said, the production, transportation and delivery of the drugs have been supervised by the SFDA.

"The building of the network doesn't stop there," Yan said. "It will further expand coverage to include more kinds of drugs."

In addition, medical institutions across the country will be covered by the network for more efficient supervision, by the end of 2010.

"It's a difficult task given that the country is so big, with so many hospitals," Gao said.

Currently, hospitals are the major channel through which narcotic and psychotropic drugs fall into the wrong hands, mostly drug addicts, Gao said.

A drug safety campaign, initiated by the SFDA, will be held from today to October 25 in some provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities across the country, Yan said at the conference.

(China Daily October 9, 2007)

Tools: Save | Print | E-mail | Most Read
Comment
Pet Name
Anonymous
China Archives
Related >>
- China Considers Anti-drug Law
- Number of Chinese Drug Addicts Drops
- Tough Fight Against Illegal Narcotics Warned
- China Builds Network to Monitor Narcotic Drugs
- China to Put Narcotics Under Real-Time Monitor
Most Viewed >>
Questions and Answers More
Q: What kind of law is there in place to protect pandas?
A: In order to put the protection of giant pandas and other wildlife under the law, the Chinese government put the protection of rare animals and plants into the Constitution.
Useful Info
- Who's Who in China's Leadership
- State Structure
- China's Political System
- China's Legislative System
- China's Judicial System
- Mapping out 11th Five-Year Guidelines
Links
- Chinese Embassies
- International Department, Central Committee of CPC
- State Organs Work Committee of CPC
- United Front Work Department, Central Committee of CPC