Online pharmacies in the Wild West are selling lethal doses of addictive prescription drugs without proper security checks, an investigation has found.
The study attempted to purchase three banned medications – painkillers and sleep and anxiety medications – from online pharmacies.
20 people were identified advertising at least one of the drugs without appropriate checks, such as approval from a patient’s GP.
The investigation found 1,600 prescription pills, including a “potentially lethal dose of the anti-anxiety drug.”
Customers could buy the drugs within minutes of filling out online questionnaires, which one website said was as “convenient as ordering groceries online.”
An investigation has found UK online pharmacies are selling restricted medicines, sometimes in lethal doses, without appropriate controls such as approval from a patient’s GP (stock photo)
The investigation, carried out by the BBC, found that three pharmacies sold the anti-anxiety drug, nine sold the painkiller and fourteen sold the sleeping pill without appropriate controls.
Some pharmacies even sent reminder emails about “good” items in their online shopping cart, urging their customers to “buy before time runs out.”
Such promotional marketing language should not be used to sell prescription drugs, according to regulators.
The BBC added that each of the 20 online pharmacies that sold to the reporters issued a disclaimer asking them to inform their GP of their purchase.
For public safety reasons, the channel chose not to name the online pharmacies or the exact medicines purchased online.
But shockingly, it comes from registered online pharmacies, trusted retailers and not illegal black market sellers.
READ MORE: Too many patients are prescribed medication they do not need. So here’s a radical solution: get pharmacists to stop prescribing
Commonly prescribed medications can be both harmful and helpful. This is especially true when people take multiple medications that work poorly together or can overload the patient’s body (file image).
Thorrun Govind, a pharmacist and former president of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society, said patients’ lives were being put at risk by the current “vague” guidelines for online pharmacies.
“The current guidelines fundamentally ask pharmacies to be robust, but do it your way, and we know that under this current system, patients have died,” she said.
“This has led to such differences that some online pharmacies require checks such as video consultations, while others can simply click on the desired medication and continue paying.”
The families of Britons who died after taking medication from online pharmacies have renewed calls for action following the findings.
Christine Taylor’s daughter Katie Corrigan, from St Erth in Cornwall, died after buying painkillers and anti-anxiety medication online without telling her GP.
The 38-year-old was originally prescribed it by his family doctor for neck pain.
Mr. However, Corrigan’s doctor refused to give him the pills out of concern she took too much.
An investigation found that none of the online pharmacies that supplied her with the medication contacted her GP to check if the medication was safe for her.
Christine told the BBC: “It’s far too simple: people’s lives are at stake and it’s a disaster waiting to happen.”
Pharmacy regulator the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPC) says online pharmacies must “secure all the information they need” to ensure they can deliver medicines safely and appropriately to a patient.
It warns that no “risky, addictive” drug should be sold without appropriate safeguards.
Commenting on the investigation, GPC boss Duncan Rudkin said it raised “very serious concerns”.
“We have asked the BBC to provide further information so that we can investigate these concerns immediately and take action to protect patients and the public,” he said.
“Our guidelines for registered pharmacies providing remote services, including via the Internet, clearly state that the sale and supply of medicines remotely involves various risks that must be appropriately managed to protect patient safety.”
“Medicines are not ordinary goods and should not be treated as such.”
Mr Rudkin added that the GPC expects pharmacists to carry out appropriate safety checks when dispensing medicines to patients, particularly those at risk of abuse, such as opioids and painkillers.
He said the GPC takes regulatory action against any online pharmacy that does not comply with proper controls.
“We identified cases where some online pharmacies dispensed these high-risk medications to patients without the pharmacy owner, prescriber, pharmacist-in-charge or other members of the team taking appropriate steps to verify that what was prescribed and delivered “The medication was clinically appropriate for the patient,” he says.
“In response, we have taken, where appropriate, enforcement and regulatory action against the owners of these registered pharmacies, as well as against individual pharmacy staff involved in both the prescribing and supply of medicines and whose actions may have fallen short of professional standards. ‘
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Crystal Leahy is an author and health journalist who writes for The Fashion Vibes. With a background in health and wellness, Crystal has a passion for helping people live their best lives through healthy habits and lifestyles.
