Online pharmacies sell prescription drugs, playing "edge" rules

NET buys the medicine gradually to become the trend, September National safe Medicine Month arrives, regarding the Internet sale Medicine the authority, many consumers do not know the relevant situation. Recently, netizens, online pharmacies selling prescription drugs, and most of the use of "online display, customer service under the single, offline distribution" way to "cleverly" to circumvent the restrictions of the FDA.

The State Administration of Medicine approved 27 online pharmacies, while expressly prohibiting the sale of prescription drugs online. "Happy People's Congress pharmacy" online Pharmacy is one of 27 online pharmacies. Speed network in the "Happy People's Congress pharmacy" online pharmacy to try to buy a box of "Lin Amoxicillin capsule", suitable for sensitive bacteria (no production of beta-lyase strains) caused by infection, this drug is shown as prescription medicine (RX). The webpage prompts "This product is the prescription medicine, cannot direct the order".

Speed network dialing customer service phone inquiries can be directly purchased, customer service staff said: "This product is prescription medicine, so can not direct orders, to upload the doctor's orders." "Then, the speed net said, do not carry a doctor's advice, whether you can buy first." A Lady service personnel said: "You can buy medicine, you need to put your drug information and demand can be registered, you can later upload the doctor's orders online, or through the offline entity shop to buy medicine." "Lady Clothing also said," Online display is a box of 14.2 yuan, not full 99 yuan, the need to pay 15 yuan, or can choose to go down to buy, but to follow the price below the line to buy. ”

Speed network also visited the Happy People's Congress pharmacy line under the south of the white heap of the real shop, asked whether the doctor can buy directly amoxicillin capsules, shop staff took out two boxes of different manufacturers of amoxicillin, respectively, capsules and tablets. The shop assistant said, "You can buy it directly, you don't need to leave any information, the doctor in the store will prescribe it." At the same time, the speed of the network in the Haidian District, the south entrance of the Gold Elephant Net entity shop to buy the same drugs, the clerk said, no orders can be purchased first, need to leave the name of a person, the store's physicians will prescribe to the headquarters.

A person in the industry said that the drug Supervision Department's judgment standard appears to be more "extensive": a judgment standard is the prescription medicine cannot have "the shopping cart", one is the online pharmacy's invoicing record cannot have the prescription medicine. In order to circumvent the above two restrictions, a small scale of pharmaceutical stores in China to adopt a clever approach to achieve "online sales, offline distribution."

Eminent It legal experts Zhao Occupation said that the state Drug Administration is directly prohibited online pharmacies selling prescription drugs, but many online pharmacies will choose their own prescriptions or other cooperative clinics prescribe ways to circumvent the legal restrictions. The way to circumvent the Internet, such as online will show some prescription drug information, including prices, if you want to buy this prescription medicine, you can not directly to the order, you may call the Internet pharmacy, customer service will require consumers to personal identity card information, prescription online upload or fax, customer service staff will use their backstage order, Direct logistics distribution to consumers.

Zhao occupation points out that after selling prescription drugs online, whether the consumers upload the doctor's advice or not, online pharmacies exist on the internet to sell prescription drugs, are in violation of the regulations of the FDA, only in the order of this link, is by their customer service staff to help consumers down a single, trying to circumvent the internet to sell prescription drugs regulations. However, the state will be fined or revoked online business qualification for violating the rules for selling prescription drugs online.

"Consumers buy all the links are not all of the consumers on the Internet, but these practices, such as prescription drug information display, payment is done online, logistics and distribution and the previous distribution of online shopping no difference, the only way to circumvent the link is customer service to help consumers order." "But the key point is whether all the trading links are done online, and I think it is selling prescription drugs online," Zhao said. ”

According to the data from the Research Institute of the Rapid Transit network, the data from the recent 3 years show that the pharmaceutical market has a huge potential and a large growth rate of more than 200% per annum. 2010, the entire pharmaceutical electronic commerce market scale of about 200 million yuan, 2011 scale doubled, to 400 million yuan, 2012 was increased to 1.5 billion yuan. The rapid Development Institute combined with the market outlook estimates that the entire online pharmaceutical market will reach a level of 4 billion yuan in 2013.