Behind Online Pharma
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Odds and ends
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Written by Marine Olivesi
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Wednesday, 11 March 2009 12:25 |
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The Associated Press reported yesterday that pharmaceutical giant Merck is buying Schering-Plough Corp. The merger will form the world’s second-largest prescription-drug maker, worth $47 billion in combined revenue in 2008. This comes six weeks after the largest drugmaker, Pfizer Inc., announced itself that it’s in the midst of acquiring Wyeth.
On NPR Morning edition today, Sean Nicholson from Cornell University said the move is an attempt to help big pharma regain firepower as they face multiple challenges, such as the imminent end of patent protection for the blockbuster drugs of the 1990s, a dearth of major new drugs coming out and the decrease of prescriptions in the US for the second consecutive quarter, a first "in recent memory,” Nicholson said.
That expensive drug sales drop in times of economic crisis make sense. What is unclear, however, is how much the online pharma business contributes to this trend. Arguably, buying drugs is not like buying a dress or an ipod. It is an not an expendable expense for cash-strapped customers... to a point. So, do people really by less drugs, or do they use more underground ways to get them?
If the latter is true, big mergers won't necessarily make big pharma better off. |
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The trade in counterfeits
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Written by Andrew Schmid
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Sunday, 08 March 2009 15:36 |
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The BBC reported last week that an investigation into the UK-based Web site Pharma2u.com by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) resulted in an elderly couple being arrested and over $350,000 in counterfeit, unlicensed and withdrawn prescription drugs being seized.
The haul, MHRA Head of Operations Danny Lee-Frost told the BBC, was only the "tip of the iceberg" of an expected multi-million-pound illegal online pharmaceutical business.
"The dangers of purchasing medicines online are that you just don't know what you are taking," he said.
The Mirror.co.uk also reported that the series of pre-dawn raids netted "a 'significant haul' of illicit drugs, including bogus Viagra and Prozac."
Currently, the watchdog group LegitScript has more than 34,000 “rogue” pharmacies in its database. These are online pharmacies from all over the world that LegitScript does not consider to be legitimate.
According to its blog, LegitScript had designated Pharma2u.com as “as a rogue several months ago, based on that fact that it did not require a valid prescription, and offered to import prescription-only drugs into the United States in violation of federal law.”
Discuss this topic in our FORUMS |
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Last Updated on Friday, 20 March 2009 13:19 |
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Enforcement and takedowns
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Written by Catalina Lobo-Guerrero
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Monday, 20 April 2009 00:00 |
In an interview, Gisela Weiser, an expert from the UN Narcotics Control Board, answered questions about a global survey that her office has been undertaking sincce 2004. The survey assesses how different countries are dealing with illegal online pharma.
Which countries are producing most of the drugs?
Legally, there are a number of large manufacturers in Europe (Germany, France, UK, Ireland, Italy, Switzerland, etc) the United States, Canada, India, China and a number more. It really depends on the substance. Illegally, it is more difficult to say but there were indications for countries in Asia but also in Central America.
Which countries host the majority of illegal pharmacies?
This is impossible to say as they tend to shift. Illegal Internet pharmacies are opened and then relocated to avoid detection. For a number of years, there were quite a few in the U.S., the Caribbean, but also in Asia. When the U.S. tightened control they relocated.
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Last Updated on Monday, 20 April 2009 09:27 |
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Read more... [From the UN, a view of the global online pharma trade]
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Online - IPs, spam, and affiliates
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Written by Hilke Schellmann
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Saturday, 11 April 2009 17:30 |
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How do online pharmacies find doctors to work for them?
Apparently, it's not that hard. Online forums, for one, allow online pharmacy owners to make an open call for doctors. One such forum is http://rxaffiliateforum.com/index.php.
A posting on the site by eckox, Junior Member, reads a follows: “I have the capital on hand looking for doctor to review and pharm to fill and ship orders to start a legitment OP PM me if any one has some help.“
Yolanda, Junior Member, posted: "Looking for a doctor to review, non controlled orders only. 95% are Tramadol, Butal. and Soma. US doctor needed. to start asap.” Tramadol, Butal and Soma are all painkillers. They are not controlled drugs but still require a doctor's prescription.
Over the years, several doctors have been indicted for making out prescriptions for online pharma clients who only have to fill out a questionnaire and are not required to see a doctor in person. These prescriptions are then sent to brick-and- mortar pharmacies that supply the drugs.
I wonder if anyone has actually found a doctor online who is willing to work for an Internet drugstore? Any information is welcome. Contact me through this site if you have something to add.
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Last Updated on Sunday, 12 April 2009 22:19 |
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Law and lobbyists
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Written by Danielle Douglas
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Tuesday, 21 April 2009 09:37 |
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When the DEA suspended the drug registration of Peter Pfeiffer on Monday, the agency said the Bellingham, Washington-based physician had illegally provided hundreds of people across the country 34,400 doses of hydrocodone via the Web. Federal agents claim Pfeiffer allowed customers to fill out an online questionnaire and provide unverified medical records to request the drug.
Pfeiffer was able to get away with issuing so many prescriptions because there is no cap on the number of prescriptions that doctors can issue in a given period. Arguably there shouldn't be, as this may hinder patients from legal access to controlled substances. But at the same time, this lack of regulation allows someone like Pfeiffer to prescribe a Schedule III drug like candy.
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Last Updated on Wednesday, 22 April 2009 14:56 |
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Read more... [I'm your pusherman...How Washington doc doled out hydrocodone online]
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