e-Profile Login and ID Quick Search
NABP Creates Middle Tier for Unaccredited Internet Pharmacies That Appear to Comply with Pharmacy Laws, Practice Standards
Beginning in July 2008, the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy® (NABP®) will add a mid-level group to its categorization of Web sites selling prescription medicine. NABP will post on its Web site a list of Reviewed Internet Pharmacy Practice Sites, which, based on a review of the public information available for these sites, appear to comply with state and federal laws and NABP patient safety and pharmacy practice standards.
This new group will accompany the existing lists of “Recommended Internet Pharmacies” and “Not Recommended Sites,” posted on May 16, 2008, as part of the Internet Pharmacies section of the NABP Web site. NABP created the new section to serve as a resource, educating patients about buying medicine online, says NABP President Rich Palombo, RPh. “By posting this additional list of sites on the NABP Web site,” he says, “our goal is to provide a more complete picture of the Internet pharmacy landscape, so that patients who choose to buy prescription medicine over the Internet have ready access to the information they need to make informed choices.”
NABP advises patients to use these Reviewed Internet Pharmacy Practice Sites with caution, as information needed to conclusively determine the legitimacy and legality of these sites may not have been available. The Association asks patients to immediately report to NABP, via the online Report-a-Site feature, any activity indicating that the sites do not comply with state and federal laws or NABP criteria, for example, if the sites dispense medicine without a valid prescription or dispense non-FDA-approved medicine. NABP will continue to monitor the activity of these sites to determine continued inclusion on this list.
NABP continues to recommend that patients use sites accredited through the Verified Internet Pharmacy Practice Sites™ (VIPPS®) program. These “Recommended Internet Pharmacies,” representing more than 12,000 pharmacies nationwide, have undergone and successfully completed the rigorous NABP accreditation process, which includes a thorough review of all policies and procedures regarding the practice of pharmacy and dispensing of medicine over the Internet, as well as an on-site inspection of all facilities used by the site to receive, review, and dispense medicine.
NABP also continues to identify Internet drug outlets that appear to be out of compliance with state and federal laws or NABP patient safety and pharmacy practice standards and lists these sites as “not recommended” on its Web site. As of June 20, 2008, the list names 273 sites as “not recommended.” NABP has identified more than 300 additional suspiciously operating sites and is in the process of verifying these findings before posting them on the Web site.
Among the 273 Internet drug outlets currently listed as “not recommended,” violations of state and federal laws include 249 sites that do not require a valid prescription, 147 sites that offer foreign or non-FDA-approved drugs, and 102 sites that are located outside of the US and selling drugs illegally in the US. Moreover, many of these Internet drug outlets do not secure patients’ personal or financial information, placing them at risk of monetary loss and identity theft.
NABP is well positioned to provide information to patients about Internet drug outlets because of its unparalleled data banks regarding state licensure of pharmacies, pharmacists, technicians, and wholesale distributors, and its experience in the regulation of pharmacy practice. A trusted advocate for patient safety since 1904, NABP is dedicated to assisting the state boards of pharmacy in the regulation of pharmacy with the goal of protecting the health of patients and their families.
The lists of NABP-recommended, reviewed, and not recommended sites, along with program criteria and related patient information, are accessible in the Internet Pharmacies section of the NABP Web site.
Larissa Doucette
