What is Internet or ‘online’ pharmacy?

What is Internet or ‘online’ pharmacy?

A search on the internet using terms like ‘online’ and ‘pharmacy’ quickly reveals that there are numerous web outlets in both the US and UK that offer a range of prescription drugs for sale. In some cases, these web sites require a person to consult with a doctor before a drug can be sold. However, the Internet user, providing he or she has a credit card, can purchase most prescription drugs such as Viagra, valium, anti-cancer drugs and weight loss drugs from these outlets.

A scan of some online pharmacy websites shows that there are different ways of conducting their business, not only between pharmacy sites operating in the US and UK, but also within the UK. Some UK sites operate like conventional pharmacies, requiring a prescription to be subitted. Indeed, pilot studies for the electronic transfer of prescriptions between doctor and pharmacist have been commissioned by the UK government.

Other UK-based online pharmacies, however, simply ask the patient to complete an online consultation questionnaire before the drug is dispatched. This latter scenario is comparable with some US-based online pharmacies, where drugs are provided without consultation and prescription and dispatched to customers anywhere in the world.

Of course, the wide availability of prescription drugs in the UK and US via the Internet raises many questions concerning the legality and regulation of the situation. Can UK based policy-makers regulate online pharmacies operating at a global level? And is such regulation desirable?

The globalisation of internet pharmacy may affect the future development and operation of UK online pharmacies and electronic prescription transfer. If pharmacies can offer drugs without a GP’s signature, does this undermine some of the government’s initiatives to modernise pharmacy? Who benefits from such outlets? What are the potential gains and losses for the pharmaceutical industry? And who uses online pharmacy?