Food and Drugs Administration to monitor sale of drugs online

With an aim to control the online sale of medicines, the Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) will be taking action against drugs sold without a prescription. Earlier, the FDA had also appealed to citizens to avoid purchase of medicines online, since the quality of drugs sold isn't monitored.

To regulate online sale of drugs and monitor the quality of the same, the FDA has issued notices to a few online portals selling medicines.

According to the FDA, there has been an increase in the sale of drugs online in the past three-four years. Sometimes, medicines are sold online without any prescription or by producing a digital prescription, and is sold without any bill. "There are several issues with the sale of drugs online. Sometimes it is found that the name of the doctor and address given in digital prescription is fake. The quality of the medicines are not monitored properly either and at times, expired ones are sold, too. These things can wreak a havoc on the patient's health," said an FDA official.

The official also added, "The licenses of many online medicine retailers in Maharashtra have been cancelled. Those being operated from outside the state, can't be controlled by FDA, Maharashtra.

FDA's Commissioner Dr Pallavi Darade was not available for a comment.

In 2017, over 8,50,00 chemist shops of the members of the All India Organisation of Chemists and Druggists (AIOCD), remained shut in protest against the government plan to introduce an e-portal to sell medicines.