Purchasing a medication or obtaining an online prescription from an
illegal Website puts
you at risk. You may receive a contaminated or counterfeit product,
the wrong product, an incorrect dose, or no product at all.
Taking an unsafe or inappropriate medication puts you at risk for
dangerous drug interactions
and other serious health consequences.
Getting an online prescription drug by filling out a questionnaire
without seeing a doctor poses serious health risks.
A questionnaire does not provide sufficient information for a health-care
professional to determine if that drug is for you or safe to use,
if another treatment is more appropriate, or if you have an underlying
medical condition where using that drug may be harmful.
The
American Medical Association has determined that this practice is
generally substandard medical
care. FDA agrees.
Before
purchasing an online prescription, safeguard yourself by following
these guidelines provided by the FDA:
Check with the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy to determine
whether a Website is a licensed pharmacy in good standing.
www.nabp.net
Phone: (847) 698-6227
-
Don't buy from sites that offer to prescribe a prescription
drug for the first time without a physical exam, sell a
prescription drug without a prescription, or sell drugs
not approved by FDA.
-
Don't do business with sites that have no access to a registered
pharmacist to answer questions.
-
Avoid sites that do not identify with whom you are dealing
and do not provide a U.S. address and phone number to contact
if there's a problem.
-
Look for easy-to-find and understand privacy and security
policies.
-
Don't provide any personally identifiable information (social
security number, credit card, and health history) unless
you are confident that the site will protect them.
-
Make
sure the site does not share your information with others
without your permission.
-
Don't
purchase from foreign Websites at this time because generally
it will be illegal to import the drugs bought from these
sites, the risks are greater, and there is very little the
U.S. government can do if you get ripped off.
-
Beware
of sites that advertise a "new cure" for
a serious disorder or a quick cure-all for a wide
range
of ailments.
-
Be careful of sites that use impressive-sounding terminology
to disguise a lack of good science or those that claim the
government, the medical profession, or research scientists
have conspired to suppress a product.
-
Steer
clear of sites that include undocumented case histories
claiming "amazing" results.
-
Talk to your health-care professional before using any medications
for the first time.
|
Based
on information provided by:
http://www.fda.gov
