AMERICA is planning to spend £6 million to protect internet consumers from peddlers of dangerous or counterfeit pharmaceuticals.
The Food and Drug Administration is to launch a public education campaign to highlight the possible dangers of buying medicines online.The announcement came after the FDA told legislators about American websites selling unapproved HIV home-testing kits, GHB - a rape drug - and abortion kits with drugs that could kill if used without a doctor's supervision.
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In Britain, the first major internet pharmacy, Pharmacy2u, launched in November, sells private prescriptions for such things as the impotence remedy Viagra, and anti-flu and anti-obesity drugs, alongside over-the-counter products. It requires would-be purchasers to supply prescriptions from their own doctors for some preparations.
The Royal Pharmaceutical Society is examining Pharmacy2u's procedures to determine whether they are satisfactory. While it used to discourage most mail order pharmacy sales strongly, it is now examining whether the internet can provide the kind of information and support consumers need when purchasing medicine and it has recently published draft guidelines for internet drug sales.
Sue Sharp, the RPS' director of professional standards, welcomed the American move, and added: "There aren't any effective structures in Europe to control illegal cross-border drug trade."
Daniel Lee, managing director of Pharmacy2u, also welcomed moves to clean up the industry. "Illegal drug sellers need to be shut down," he said. He wants the RPS to come up with some kind of kitemarking scheme for distinguishing websites like his from less reputable businesses.