>>
what if you needed a potentially lifesaving medicine only to be told it wasn't available. it's become a serious problem for
health care
providers across the country. now congressional investigators say they found one possible reason, fake pharmacies. nbc's senior investigative correspondent lisa meyers has the story.
>> reporter:
jake has stage four cancer. last summer as he was about to receive chemotherapy, he was suddenly informed the drug he needed wasn't available.
>>
my nurse told me the drug wasn't available and i wouldn't be able to do my chemo today, i was shocked. how could this be happening in the
united states of america
.
>> reporter:
around the same time records show a pharmacy in this building in
north carolina
, ltc was buying the same drug supposedly to fill prescriptions. when
north carolina
regulators did an inspection, they found on this. no records, no equipment.
>>
did you find a pharmacist?
>>
no, did not.
>>
how can you have a pharmacy with no pharmacist.
>>
good question.
>>
congressman and his investigators say it's a fake pharmacy set up to explore the drug shortage.
>>
this is about greed, simply about greed, people wanting to make a quick buck at the expense of sick
american people
.
>> reporter:
records show the pharmacy was buying the drugs and the same day selling them to a wholesaler owned by the same person, international pharmaceuticals, which was then reselling the drugs again at higher prices.
>>
congressman and investigators called this operation a fake pharmacy. do you agree with that assessment?
>>
we didn't see any evidence of them filling any prescriptions.
>>
there's a for lease sign. when we visited the company's office in durham, nobody was home.
>>
the place is empty. no one in there. facing the prospect of having its
north carolina
license revoked, the company surrendered it instead. congressional investigators say what happened here in
north carolina
isn't an isolated case. they say they found what and to be fake pharmacies around the country buying up medicines in short supply. these pharmacies didn't cause the shortages, but investigators say by diverting drugs into the
gray market
, they are creating delays and added costs for patients.
>>
it's definitely making the shortage worse and also driving up the prices.
>> reporter:
but the lawyer for the owner of the
north carolina
pharmacy says she's a smart businesswoman, who is actually helping, not hurting, by enabling medical facilities to get the drugs patients need more quickly. jake got his chemo a week lay but worries those exploiting drug shortages may delay vital treatment for other cancer patients fighting to survive.
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