Trade in Illegal Medicine 

Pharmaceutical Companies lose out on a great deal of money due to the rise in illegal trade of counterfeit drugs. Currently there are about 800 "medications" that are being distributed on a local and international scale. This is highly problematic not only for the profit being lost on prescription drugs but also for the consumers of these fake prescriptions. According to IMAP, between 8% and 15% of the global pharmaceutical industry consists of counterfeit drugs, if you were to convert this into money standards, companies are losing out on 75 to 200 billion USD. These statistics drastically increase when reaching sub-Saharan African countries where about 50% of the pharmaceutical market is fake medicine. Though medicines seem to be offered at a lower price through the black market, it comes with many more risks. Majority of counterfeit drugs do not contain the active ingredient in them, leaving consumers with worsening conditions or even death. Further, the drugs are typically concocted in an unsterile environment with bacteria and other harmful chemicals. Although to many people counterfeit prescriptions seem like an affordable alternative, they pose a serious threat to one's health and safety (Redpath, Worldfinance.com). Below is a pamphlet from Safemedicines.org that shows how widespread and dangerous this issue is, it proves that taking the cheaper route for drugs is not beneficial nor effective. 

Photo from Carrington College.