Last Updated on March 17, 2023 by The Health Master
Online sale of medicines
The Delhi High Court has requested a status report from the Centre on petitions seeking a ban on “illegal” online medicine sales.
The court listed the matter for further hearing on May 22, following the Centre’s assertion that a proposal for framing rules to regulate e-pharmacies was being considered and more time was needed.
The petitioners had challenged the draft rules published by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare to further amend the Drugs and Cosmetics Rules.
Petitioner Alleges Violation of Law
The South Chemists and Distributors Association, a petitioner in the case, has challenged the ministry’s August 2018 notification, saying the draft rules are being pushed through in serious violation of the law.
The petitioner also claimed the rules ignore the health hazards caused by the unregulated sale of medicines online.
Zaheer Ahmed, another petitioner, has sought contempt action against e-pharmacies for continuing to sell medicine online despite a high court order staying such activity.
The petition also seeks contempt action against the central government for allegedly not taking any steps against the defaulting e-pharmacies.
Online Pharmacies Claim No License Required
Some e-pharmacies have argued that they do not require a license for online sale of medicines and prescription medicines, as they do not sell them, and instead only deliver the medications, akin to food delivery app Swiggy.
The high court had earlier sought responses from the Centre, Delhi government, Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO), and the Pharmacy Council of India (PCI) to the petition.
The PIL claimed that the illegal sale of medicines online would lead to a “drug epidemic”, drug abuse, and misutilisation of habit-forming and addictive drugs.
Risk of Unregulated Sale of Medicines Online
The PIL also claimed that there was no mechanism to control the sale of medicines online, which put the health and lives of people at high risk and affected their right to a safe and healthy life under Article 21 of the Constitution.
It further asserted that online pharmacies were operating without a drug license and could not be regulated in the present regime.
Unregulated and unlicensed sale of medicines would increase the risk of spurious, misbranded, and sub-standard drugs being sold.
Some drugs/medicines contain narcotic and psychotropic substances, while others can cause antibiotic-resistant bacteria, which is not only a threat to the patient but to humanity at large.
The PIL also highlighted that e-commerce websites had been caught on numerous occasions selling fake products, and that unlike consumer items, drugs are extremely potent substances that, if consumed in wrong doses or as fake medicines, can have fatal consequences for patients.
A large number of children use the internet and could be victims of wrong medications, it added.
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