The Theft of Medicines from Italian Hospitals

Along with counterfeiting, theft of medicines is emerging as the new frontier of pharmaceutical crime. In Italy between 2006 and 2013 one hospital out of ten has registered thefts of pharmaceuticals, suffering, on average, an economic loss of about 330 thousands euro each episode.

This report represents the first study on this booming but almost unknown criminal phenomenon. In particular it carries out:

• An exploration of the background behind pharmaceutical theft and of the drivers that influence the demand and the supply of stolen medicines (Chapter 1);

• An analysis, based on cases reported by media, of thefts of medicines from Italian hospitals between 2006 and 2013 (Chapter 2).