U.S. lawmakers seek to crack down on Web pharmacies

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U.S. lawmakers seek to crack down on Web pharmacies

Last Updated: 2004-03-19 10:53:36 -0400 (Reuters Health)

By Heavey

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. lawmakers are pushing for legislation to

rein in the growing number of Internet pharmacies filling drug orders

from patients who may have never seen a doctor.

" Too many people are finding ways to obtain medications online without

valid prescriptions, " U.S. House of Representatives Government Reform

Committee Chairman Rep. Tom said at a hearing on Thursday.

More than 1,000 U.S. Web sites offer prescription drugs without

requiring proper documentation, U.S. Food and Drug Administration

officials testified.

Some sites employ physicians to talk with patients on the phone before

writing a prescription, usually for a fee based on the number written.

Others require no prescription at all.

Sites can also ask patients to fill out a questionnaire about their

symptoms and medical history, but those are often ignored, said FDA

Associate Commissioner Hubbard.

Tracking down rogue sites, however, can be difficult.

In one example, Hubbard said FDA officials bought several prescription

drugs from what looked like a China-based Web site. The package arrived

with a return address in Miami, a postmark from Texas and a reorder form

to be sent to an overseas address in Belize.

" This site has so many convoluted potential sources, we don't know where

it is, " Hubbard said.

A bill introduced by , a Virginia Republican, would force Web sites

to clearly identify their doctors and pharmacists as well as their

contact information.

The Internet Pharmacy Consumer Protection Act would also require

face-to-face meetings between patients and doctors.

Although states regulate prescriptions, Web sites based in one state and

selling to patients in another can cause enforcement headaches,

legislators said.

" A Web site operator can be in one state, the pharmacy in a second state

and the prescribing physician in a third state, " said Ranking Minority

Member Rep. Henry Waxman, a Democrat from California who co-sponsored

the bill.

Under the legislation, states could take a Web pharmacy to federal

court, even if that site is based in another state.

Because the bill would only affect U.S.-based Internet pharmacies, it

would not impact patients who buy drugs from Web sites based in other

countries.

I'll tell you where to go!

Mayo Clinic in Rochester

http://www.mayoclinic.org/rochester

s Hopkins Medicine

http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org