Chemists demand blanket ban on online sale of medicines

Amritsar, August 2016
The All-India Organization of Chemists and Druggists (AIOCD), having a pan-India presence of more than 8 lakh members, has reiterated its demand for a total ban on online sales of medicines as it says that such an activity can lead to major public health problems.

Association’s Punjab president Surinder Duggal said they had written a letter to the Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare, the Prime Minister, the Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare and other senior functionaries of the government and cautioned them that online sale of medicines, if allowed, would prove hazardous to public health at large as unscrupulous elements could route spurious drugs to customers via the online platform.

There was no system to check authenticity of prescriptions submitted online, Duggal said, adding that this could lead to misuse and irrational use of Schedule X drugs like Diazepam- a tranquillizing muscle-relaxant drug used chiefly to relieve anxiety; Zolpidem- a sedative primarily used for the treatment of insomnia, Alprazolam- a medication used to treat anxiety disorders and panic disorders; Oxycodone- an opioid pain medication and Schedule H drugs like Stanozolol- a steroid used by sportspersons for stamina. Tribuneindia