To buy these drugs safely online, the International Anti-Counterfeit Medicines Research Institute reminds us how to avoid the pitfalls.
Reduced price, convenient purchase… Online pharmacies are booming. But this market is still facing the reluctance of the French. Barely half of them say they are ready to buy drugs online. A lack of confidence linked in particular to the fear of buying fake drugs or illegal products.
A well-founded fear, assures the International Institute for Anti-Counterfeit Medicines Research (Iracm), which recalls that one out of two drugs sold on the internet is counterfeit. So to guarantee Internet users to buy quality and non-dangerous products, the organization recalls the 12 golden rules to follow.
First rule: always consult the legislation of your country or that from which you place your order, while preferring the purchase on a site located in your country of residence. In France, the drugs that can be sold on the internet are those not subject to compulsory prescription. In other words, drugs available without a prescription. The law also provides that only pharmacists holding a dispensing pharmacy and member of the National Order of Pharmacists can have an online sales site. To date, 360 pharmacies have received authorization to market medicines on the internet.
However, these legal sites are only the tip of the iceberg. Of the 50,000 online pharmacies operating worldwide today, approximately 95% do not comply with the laws and standards created to protect patients. Also to ensure that the site is legal, Iracm invites Internet users to carefully observe the website in order to verify its legality of the site, and to verify the presence of a label.
In France to verify that the site is legal, and that the pharmacy attached to the site does exist, the Order of Pharmacists keeps up to date a list of pharmacies authorized to sell medicines on the internet, and makes it available to the general public. These online pharmacies must at least indicate the name of the pharmacist who owns the site and the pharmacy in duration as well as the address of this one. An email address and a telephone number are also available to reach the professional. Iracm strongly encourages customers of these sites to try to contact them directly. These authorized French sites also display the corporate name and contact details of the website host, or the contact details of the National Medicines Safety Agency (ANSM).
Identify the logo
In addition, since July 2015, a European logo has also been put in place on all authorized online sales sites. It allows you to check the legality of this site by clicking on the flag at the bottom left of the logo. But Iracm warns that these authentication labels are not universal and are unfortunately falsifiable.
The anti-counterfeit drug organization also recommends being wary of overly attractive prices and tempting advertisements on these sites. Advertising emails are not a good sign. And of course, it is important to use a secure means of payment.
Once the products have been received, it is better to carefully examine the packaging and verify the origin because 90% of drugs purchased online come from a country other than that claimed by the site, notes Iracm. If in doubt, do not hesitate to alert the authorities.
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