Forum Moderators: skibum
Two federal agencies, the Food and Drug Administration and the Drug Enforcement Administration, have formed a special task force to crack down on the growing tide of illicit sales of narcotics on the Internet.
The task force may close Internet pharmacies in the United States that have operated in a legal gray area for years by hiring physicians who write prescriptions based solely on the results of an e-mail questionnaire."If a prescription is written by a doctor based solely on information from an online questionnaire, it's not valid, so the distribution is illegal," Ms. Willis said.
Fill enough DEA agents inbox's with Vicodin spam and they start to pay attention I guess.
Time to look for those alternative markets I guess!
SN
There exists a few different legal opinions on the issue, and it is certainly a gray area.
a private investigator hired by the pharmaceutical industry, recently released a report saying his team found 1,400 Web sites that sell prescription medicines
That must have taken all of 3 minutes.
What's the difference?
You gotta be kidding. Is this a serious question? Try asking an ethical doctor that question. Or Rush Limbaugh.
That must have taken all of 3 minutes.
Still chuckling over that one.
Without getting into a debate on medical ethics, Rush became addicted to painkillers that were prescribed to him by a doctor. Oxycontin is highly addictive.
People that want Phentermine, Oxycontin, Valium, etc will simply find a doctor to prescribe the medication. There are reams of material written on the
subject.
Everyone in the industry knew this was going to happen. There is money involved. Lots of it. It will be interesting to see how they police it. Prohibition of any sort, has been a miserable failure throughout history. Supply and demand can't be legislated. ;) People with money will get want they want.
None of those drug companies seemed to mind supplying online pharmacies with prescription medication. Why isn't the DEA and the FDA cracking down on them?
The most telling quote for me was:
The drug industry is fiercely opposed to reimportation, saying it is dangerous and undercuts its ability to finance research
Id est, we want our share of the pie back. It's always about the money...
What's the difference?
That reminds me of certains docs we used to go see in college.
Certain classes had an "attendance call" which required a doctor's note to excuse yourself for not being there.
Plenty of docs were known for doing the "so you weren't feeling well that day" routine. No need to describe your ailment, so hangover was OK :)
You paid them the regular visit fee and got the note/excuse.
If someone wants to get strung out on drugs this way or take the risk that it might be cut with an addictive or life threatening additive that's his decision and should live with the consequences if they turn out negative. The only drugs I would love to see pushed into the black-market are the impotence ones. After all, you said the doctor only asks you guys 3-4 questions so it shouldn't be hard to go the regular route if you choose to do so.
That bieng the case, the solution lies in an agile online pharmacy that carries "lifestyle" drugs in the current manner, but requires a physical exam from a networked clinic or an existing prescription for controlled substances.
Since these models exist already, I think it will force the bulk of online pharmacies to follow suit and come into compliance.
It will force the prices up again for consumers, and thin the competition.
My 2 cents :)
SN
Some of my prior clients pulled their sites within minutes after the article ran. Some of them simply can't stand a whiff of controversy. Some of them are in wait-and-see mode. Some, insist they've seen the writing on the wall and it was similar to mene, mene, tekel, upharsin.
Canadian Drugs are one of the few things which is
a lot cheaper in Canada than the USA. And Canadian Drugs are even more tightly regulated than the FDA.
This market has been created because American Drug Companies are robbing the American public,
and now look at the mess that has been created.
These companies must realize that the marketplace
is now global, and they can nolonger charge different prices in diferent market sectors. This
does not apply to just drugs but to any commodity.
Selling addictive drugs on the street corner isn't permitted. Why is selling prescription drugs to people that desparately need them at dope-dealer markups by the pharmaceutical industry permitted?
A case of throwing out the baby with the bathwater? Yes, but I don't give a damn. The industry is to blame for turning a blind eye to spamming affiliates and if the entire industry pays the price then so be it.
...a special task force to crack down on the growing tide of illicit sales of narcotics on the Internet.
Corrected:
...a special task force to crack down on the growing tide of illicit sales of narcotics on the Internet which result in lower payoffs and kickbacks to local law enforcement agencies.
Meanwhile, the folks working on this just drank their fifth pot of coffee, followed by their codein, vicodin, allegra pills as a prelude to their smoke break.
if nothing else happens, i hope that the spam subsides. i have gotten FAR less spam today. i don't know if it's a direct or indirect result, but it's good.
You gotta be kidding. Is this a serious question? Try asking an ethical doctor that question. Or Rush Limbaugh.
Serious question. What's the difference between me filling out an online questionnaire describing my symptoms and me telling a doctor my symptoms? In either case, a doctor reviews the information and issues a prescription if he thinks my symptoms warrant a certain drug. You do know that actual doctors are issuing these prescriptions, right? The only difference is quantity of prescriptions filled by the doctors involved.
What's the differenceA reputable doctor, knowing the kinds of abuse that can go on, doesn't just take your word for it. At the very least she's going to check your vital signs and look through your chart for your history of symptoms and prescriptions. OR, it's someone you've been seeing for ten years and he feels he "knows" you to suggest a particular course of treatment. Either way the doctor will only prescribe a drug if confident its benefits outweigh potential problems-- the patient's other medications, congenital conditions, history of addiction, etc. You can't verify any of those things online, so it was irresponsible for those docs to prescribe the drugs based on something that came in over an e-mail.
Does this mean I get less spam email?
That depends - do you think size matters?
Oh well, its back to sensitivity training :)
'Everyone else is doing it, why can't we?' doesn't work too well when the answer is 'Because we are shutting down everyone else as well' ;)
Jordan
