The All India Organisation of Chemists & Druggists (AIOCD) has  demanded amendment in Section 10, 18 and 27 of Drugs and Cosmetics Act (D&C Act) to prohibit sales of medicines through internet, web portal, receiving of order and home delivery of medicines. The chemists and druggists want the retail sales of medicines to consumers via internet should be declared as illegal with immediate effect.

The AIOCD has recently sent a memorandum to Anant Kumar, minister of chemicals & fertilizers and met Dr G N Singh, Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) to discuss the matter. In the meeting with DCGI, AIOCD president Jagannath Shinde informed that recently it is found that many internet based business web portals are offering medicines on business to business (B2B) or business to customers (B2C) basis.

He also stated that e-pharmacies in whatever form or model now operational in India are illegal and current set of law does not allow to operate e-pharmacy. It is expedient for the government to take immediate steps to amend the D&C Act, 1940 especially by incorporating the suitable provisions in section 10 and 18 of the Act and prohibit the sales of medicines through internet.

Shinde further says, “Though pharmacy profession is evolving in India, our members have served public even to rural population and remote areas over decades. Medicine cannot be compared with any other commodity. There are three important basic factors which are essential in dispensing the medicines- first is doctor- prescriber, second is pharmacist – dispenser and third is patient- consumer. Hence it is not like a grocery or cloth which is bought directly online without consulting anyone.”

Recently, many internet-based business web portals are offering medicines to common public blatantly disregarding the provisions of the law as well as in direct contravention of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act. Some of these medicines fall under various schedules which require stringent conditions and license for its sale laying emphasis on necessity of prescription, qualifications of the supervision of qualified person who is dispensing the medicines, storage conditions of the premises where medicines are stored.

The government has introduced Schedule-H1 which mandates the licensee to maintain the register of its sales data whereas in internet transaction this is bypassed. In order to prevent any adverse drug reaction, the government has also established pharmacovigilance machinery to supervise and analyse the impact of drugs on human beings and intervene in case of health issues, this machinery is likely to be rendered ineffective in case of internet business scenario.

In the case of internet trade, the drug recalls also becomes impossible and can have adverse impact on health of a person. There is a practice of voluntarily recall of the drugs by manufacturers in case of quality issue. Similarly the state FDA also orders the recall of drugs if it does not meet the standard or quality criteria.

The chemists and druggists claims that the supply of medicines from internet pharmacies is making all the sections, provisions and rules redundant and renders regulatory mechanisms ineffective, thereby not complying with the basic necessities of regulating the imports, manufacture, distribution and sale of drugs and cosmetics as declared in the Act. This trend of drug sales over internet is endangering the public health and their safety.

AIOCD wants amendment in Section 27 to impose strict punishment for the activities of selling, dispensing of drugs, medicines to end users and consumers over internet. The existing rules related to the conditions of sale of medicines are very old and lack the provisions to deter the business of medicines over internet.