December 16, 2011 | By Allison Cerra
ALEXANDRIA, Va. — A new bipartisan bill introduced in the Senate seeks to protect consumers from Internet drug sellers posing as legitimate pharmacies.
Sens. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif; and Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., introduced The Online Pharmacy Safety Act of 2011 on Thursday, which "targets fraud associated with illegitimate online drug sellers, particularly those who sell counterfeit drugs, provide drugs without a prescription or take money without providing anything in return." The bill also would require the Food and Drug Administration to establish a registry of legitimate online pharmacy websites.
“Consumers deserve access to safe, legitimate online pharmacies,” Feinstein said. “If you need to order your prescriptions online, you should be assured you are getting the real medication — not contaminated ingredients or even the wrong ingredients. This bill will put a stop to fraudulent websites that sell illegal or counterfeit drugs or take advantage of consumers.”
The National Association of Chain Drug Stores announced it endorsed the legislation, noting that research has found that 1-in-6 Americans — or more than 36 million consumers — has purchased prescription medication online without a valid prescription.
“The problem is exacerbated because these rogue sites purposely masquerade as legitimate pharmacies, duping innocent Americans into purchasing unsafe or fake medicine. As a result, Americans’ health is put at risk and the costs to the nation’s healthcare system rise dramatically,” the letter stated. “Your legislation will protect Americans against this growing threat by ensuring they have the resources they need to access safe and legitimate online pharmacies.”
Click here to view the letter.
ASOP Supports Legislation to Assist Consumers in Making Safe Online Drug Purchases
Washington (December 16, 2011) - The Alliance for Safe Online Pharmacies (ASOP) applauds U.S. Senators Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), and Jeff Sessions (R-AL), along with Senators Charles Schumer (D-NY) and John Cornyn (R-TX) for introducing the Online Pharmacy Safety Act of 2011 (S. 2002) today.
This bill takes a critical first step to update and enhance U.S. law to protect patients from the growing number of illegitimate and unsafe online drug sellers that prey on consumers. The bill would help to protect U.S. consumers and ensure access to safe and law-abiding online pharmacies.
Despite the existence of many online pharmacy websites that do adhere to safety standards, extensive and sophisticated criminal organizations are taking advantage of consumers who purchase medicine over that Internet. Outdated laws have enabled these criminal organizations to establish thousands of rogue internet sites that sell potentially unsafe drugs to Americans, while circumventing U.S. laws and pharmacy standards put in place to protect American patients. The National Association of Boards of Pharmacy (NABP) reports that 96% of all online drug sellers are illegitimate and operating in violation of U.S. law. Additionally, research conducted by the Partnership at Drugfree.org found that 1 in 6 Americans has purchased prescription medication via the Internet without a valid prescription.
The Online Pharmacy Safety Act of 2011 would provide basic updates to the law to protect Americans against the growing number of illegitimate online drug sellers and ensure that Americans have the resources to access safe and legitimate online pharmacies. If enacted, S. 2002 will require the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to create a consumer-accessible registry of legitimate, law-abiding online pharmacy websites so that consumers who choose to purchase medicine online will have a resource and confidence in the source of their medication.
The Act establishes clear criteria for determining an online pharmacy website's legitimacy, including that the site operate according to standards that are consistent with the NABP's Verified Internet Pharmacy Practice Site (VIPPS) program. The bill also provides immunity to Internet commerce companies which may voluntarily, in good faith, refuse to engage in a contract with online drug sellers that violate laws and/or fail to meet the criteria for inclusion on the registry.
Additionally, the Online Pharmacy Safety Act of 2011 would offer much-needed updating to federal law regarding what constitutes a "valid prescription." Current federal law makes it clear that a “valid prescription” is required for the purchase of controlled substances but no such explicit requirement exists for non-controlled substances. This gap in consumer protection is continuously exploited by illegal online drug sellers. The Act would clarify that both controlled and non-controlled substances require a valid prescription for purchases, and require all prescriptions be issued for legitimate medical purposes, in the usual course of a medical professional's practice.
"The Online Pharmacy Safety Act of 2011 creates essential new tools to protect consumers from the dangerous actions of illegal online drug sellers," said Bill Reid, senior director, Lilly Global Anti-Counterfeiting Operations, a member of ASOP.
"For years, thousands of online drug sellers have been operating illegally on the Internet, bypassing critical public health and safety laws. The Internet has facilitated their illegitimate enterprise for too long; therefore it is fitting that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services be able to use the Internet to educate consumers and help the public not fall prey to these criminal operators." said Libby Baney, Vice President at B&D Consulting who advises ASOP.
“This legislation will protect Americans against this growing threat by ensuring they have the resources they need to access safe and legitimate online pharmacies. NACDS wholeheartedly endorses your legislation,” said Steven C. Anderson, President and CEO of the National Association of Chain Drug Stores (NACDS).
About the Alliance for Safe Online Pharmacies:
The Alliance for Safe Online Pharmacies (ASOP) is committed to helping to protect patient safety and ensuring patient access to safe and legitimate online pharmacies in accordance with U.S. laws. Members of ASOP include the American Pharmacists Association, the European Alliance for Access to Safe Medicines, Eli Lilly and Company, Enforce the Act, the International Pharmaceutical Federation, LegitScript, Merck, the National Association of Chain Drug Stores, NeedyMeds, and the Partnership at Drugfree.org. For more about ASOP: http://www.safeonlinerx.com
For more information, please contact Philip Bonforte at 703-539-ASOP,
Posted by Alliance Editor on December 16, 2011 in Safe Online Pharmacy News | Permalink
Ok here is what I have to say...
Is the same BS as the SOPA and PIPA and ACTA with a twist... geared to protect Big Pharma from loosing money from generic drug manufacturers.
What means is that you... For example, $75 per Aspirin Pill that comes from Bayer than $0.25 and Aspirin from a local shop.
Some medications like Viagra, Lipitor, Xanax, etc... are coming of their patent protection; therefore, a generic pharma can make them at a huge discount.
Now, they are looking for new uses like Viagara treatment for kids with some kind of lumps.
Poor Whitney Houston's, Michael Jackson's death is the perfect vehicle to pitch the idea... Let me see, she got some bad drugs from shopping for the best deal.
It is important that research is made (and financed) to solve human problems. So there has to be some kind of motivation for it.On the other hand it would be immoral if some company came up with an Aids cure - and only a few could get it because it would be too expensive. 
