AS AUSTRALIAN pharmacists are being warned against dispensing unnecessary multiple repeats, in response to panic surrounding the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) (PD yesterday), a pharmacy owner in Malaysia is facing jail time for restricting access to face masks.
The 46-year-old pharmacist was busted by the Ministry of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs yesterday over allegations that he has breached the Price Control and Anti-Profiteering Act 2011, following complaints that he was refusing to sell face masks to patients, unless they also purchased hand sanitiser, as fears over the novel coronavirus grip the country.
The Ministry's chief enforcement officer, Md Asmadi Shafii, said undercover agents were sent to the pharmacy to verify the allegations prior to yesterday's bust.
Asmadi said the case was the first of its kind in the state involving face masks, with the pharmacist staring down a potential three-year jail sentence, a $36,000 fine, or both, as a result of his efforts to boost hand hygiene.
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