By BRIAN SKOLOFF
Associated Press Writer
SAN FRANCISCO- Customs agents have intercepted more than 50 shipments of fake Tamiflu, the antiviral drug being stockpiled in anticipation of a bird flu pandemic, marking the first such seizures in the U.S., authorities said Sunday.
The first package was intercepted Nov. 26 at an airmail facility near San Francisco International Airport, said Roxanne Hercules, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
Since then, agents have seized 51 separate packages, each containing up to 50 fake capsules, Hercules said.
The shipments, labeled generic Tamiflu, were sent by Asian suppliers to individuals who placed orders via the Internet. So far, no shipments were bound for doctors or hospitals, she said.
Customs officials were suspicious and contacted the Food and Drug Administration, which tested the capsules.
“It just has small traces of Tamiflu, but basically it’s not Tamiflu at all,” Hercules said.
The FDA did not immediately return a telephone call seeking comment.
Tamiflu is produced by Swiss pharmaceutical manufacturer Roche, and there is no generic brand available.
Hercules said the shipments contained the first counterfeit Tamiflu capsules seized in the United States.
“They continue to come in, so we’re stopping them before they cross into the economy,” Hercules said. “We’re currently stockpiling Tamiflu all over the world in case of a pandemic, and you certainly don’t want to stockpile something that’s not going to be working. We want to make people aware.”
The H5N1 strain of the virus has ravaged poultry stocks across Asia and killed at least 71 people since 2003.
Tamiflu is one of four drugs that can treat regular flu if taken soon after symptoms begin. It is in short supply because it is being stockpiled as one of just two drugs effective against bird flu.
The Food and Drug Administration is working to track down the source of the counterfeit shipments, Hercules said.
Officials with Roche refused to comment Sunday, referring instead to the company’s Web site, which warned against buying Tamiflu via the Internet.