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Group Warns Of Unsafe Online Pharmacies
Mike Sachoff
Staff Writer
2009-12-29
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The National Association of Boards of Pharmacy (NABP) said it now lists more than 5,000 Internet drug outlets as Not Recommended. These sites have been found to be out of compliance with pharmacy laws established in the United States to protect public health.
 | | Group Warns Of Unsafe Online Pharmacies |  |
"There is a common misconception that prescription medications purchased from any Web site calling itself a pharmacy are safe," says NABP President Gary A. Schnabel, RN, RPh.
"Patients have grown to trust prescription medications in the US because the manufacturing and supply systems are tightly regulated to ensure safety. What many patients fail to realize, however, is that when buying medications from unknown sources online, those safeguards vanish, and the odds of getting counterfeit or substandard medication rise substantially."
Of the 5,008 sites listed as Not Recommended:
*More than 75% (4,029) dispense drugs without a valid prescription.
*More than half (2,762) accept a brief online questionnaire in place of a prescription. To be valid, and to ensure patient safety, a prescription must be based on a legitimate patient-practitioner relationship that has included a face-to-face physical examination.
*Nearly 25% (1,327) post a physical address located outside the US.
*Nearly half (2,436) do not provide any physical address. According to the World Health Organization, more than 50% of medicines purchased over the Internet from sites that conceal their physical address are counterfeit.
*Nearly 20% (956) do not have secure sites that protect patients' personal and financial information.
About the Author:
Mike is a staff writer for WebProNews. Visit WebProNews for the latest ebusiness news.
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