Online pharmacy ‘safe-list’
May 10, 2016
THE Therapeutic Goods
Administration has been urged to
release a “safe list of Australian
online pharmacies,” in order
to protect consumers from the
dangers of counterfeit drugs.
The recommendations are part of
a paper published this week in the
Medical Journal of Australia, with
author Dr Conor Hensey from the
Department of General Medicine
at the Royal Children’s Hospital in
Melbourne providing a detailed
insight into the global fake drug
market via online pharmacies.
He said that of 36,000 active
internet pharmacies, less than 5%
are thought to be legitimate.
The Pharmacy Guild of
Australia was also quoted as
saying, “The World Health
Organization estimates that up to
1% of medicines available in the
developed world, and 10% globally,
are likely to be counterfeit.
“The globalisation of markets has
made the distribution of medicines
easier, with people having direct
access to medicines via the internet
without the need for consultation
with a health professional.”
However currently the stringent
legislation and governance in
Australia the prevalence of fake
drugs is estimated currently at less
than 1% of market value.
Drugs bought online in Australia
are often lifestyle medications
targeting weight loss, erectile
dysfunction or hair growth, the
paper states.
“In the era of increasing
globalisation of pharmaceutical
products, Australia must remain
vigilant and clear guidelines
for monitoring, regulation and
education are needed,” Hensley
wrote, recommending that all
Australian online pharmacies
should be accredited through the
Quality Care Pharmacy Program,
with the Guild and the TGA to
jointly use this accreditation to
release the so-called ‘safe list’.
He also suggested public
awareness campaigns in relation
to online pharmacies through
NPS MedicineWise and the
Australian Prescriber, “resources
widely accessed by consumers,
pharmacists and prescribers”.
Finally the paper recommends
that the Australian Customs
and Border Protection Service
should continue to work with
global agencies to optimise the
identification of counterfeit
medications.
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