Online mail order for over-the-counter medicines launched
As of June 25, Austrian pharmacies may sell over-the-counter medicines via the Internet - BMG and BASG launch awareness campaign
Austrian pharmacies will be allowed to sell over-the-counter medicines over the Internet starting June 25, 2015. Online shipping will only be possible through pharmacies, not drugstores or supermarkets, for example. All pharmacies wishing to make use of online shipping must report their activities to the Federal Office for Safety in Health Care (BASG). The BASG's mail-order pharmacy register, versandapotheken.basg.gv.at, will then publish a list of legally operating pharmacies that consumers can consult to ensure they are ordering over-the-counter medicines exclusively from legal sources. "The high quality standards and shipping exclusively through pharmacies protect consumers from counterfeit drugs and increase drug safety," Health Minister Sabine Oberhauser is convinced. To make it easier to recognize legally operating pharmacies on the Internet, there will be a common EU-wide safety logo for mail-order pharmacies, which consumers can use to get an overview of legal providers.
Awareness campaign - "Buying medicines on the Internet? Do you really know what you're getting?"
According to an ISA study commissioned by the Ministry of Health on the subject of online delivery of medicines in Austria, the level of knowledge about the regulation of the trade in medicines on the Internet in Austria is low. A relative majority of 46 percent incorrectly believe that over-the-counter medicines are already allowed to be sold online in Austria. Eighty percent have not yet heard of the current change in the law; at the same time, 58 percent of respondents welcome it and around 70 percent rate it as making everyday life easier. Around 54 percent also expect a reduction in the cost of medicines as a result of the new option of online delivery from Austrian pharmacies. "The low level of knowledge about the legal options for buying medicines over the Internet, combined with the positive attitude towards the online delivery of over-the-counter medicines by Austrian pharmacies, shows us that education in this area is urgently needed. Together with the BASG, the Ministry of Health is therefore now launching the educational initiative "Buying medicines on the Internet? Do you really know what you are getting?" With info folders, info placements in the major daily media and on our homepage, we want to inform the population of the new possibility of sending over-the-counter medicines online and at the same time educate them about the dangers of buying from illegal suppliers," explains Oberhauser.
Technical background
Every year, customs seize large quantities of counterfeit medicines ordered from illegal vendors on the Internet. The manufacturers of these products are increasingly succeeding in making banned and potentially dangerous counterfeits look deceptively genuine on the outside. Unlike original preparations, however, counterfeit medicines are almost invariably produced under unknown and uncontrolled conditions and thus pose a massive health risk. "Counterfeit drugs contain either no active ingredient or a different one. Often the active ingredient occurs in ineffectively low or dangerously high concentrations. The use of counterfeit medicines can have dangerous and sometimes even toxic or life-threatening effects due to unknown additives or impurities," explains Christa Wirthumer-Hoche, Head of AGES Medical Market Surveillance "You cannot recognize counterfeit medicines. The only way to be on the safe side when buying online is to buy from registered, legal mail-order pharmacies, which must display the EU-wide safety logo on their website," explains Health Minister Sabine Oberhauser and is convinced: "With the new regulation on online shipping of over-the-counter medicines via Austrian pharmacies, we have succeeded in taking an important step in the fight against illegal drug trafficking." According to the study commissioned by the BMG, this assessment is also shared by those surveyed: around 61 percent see the change in the law as a help in the fight against illegal trade online. That the drug trade would become safer as a result of the measure, 58 percent agree. The restriction of online trade to pharmacies is supported by 69 percent.
Verification of authenticity
To be on the safe side when buying medicines online, it is important to pay attention to the logo. For orders from an Austrian Internet pharmacy, it is essential to also consider the Austrian flag symbol in the logo. Legal, registered Internet pharmacies are only allowed to sell over-the-counter medicines, which are licensed in Austria, to or in Austria. "The legality and safety of the selected Internet pharmacy can be easily checked. Make sure that the Internet pharmacy you have chosen is marked with the safety logo. Click on this security logo before completing your purchase and you will be redirected to the BASG's register of mail-order pharmacies. If you find your Internet pharmacy there in the list, then you can be sure to receive legal original medicines," says Christa Wirthumer-Hoche.
Legal background
In order to be authorized to engage in mail-order sales, domestic, public pharmacies must meet additional requirements in accordance with Section 59a of the German Medicines Act. These are checked by the Federal Office for Safety in Health Care. Any public pharmacy wishing to offer this service must register this with the Federal Office for Safety in Health Care before commencing operations. Once registration has been completed, the Federal Office for Safety in Health Care includes the pharmacy in a list of approved mail-order pharmacies, thereby confirming that the pharmacies listed therein meet the legal requirements for dispensing medicines by distance selling.
Links:
Info on online mail order in Austria:http://www.bmg.gv.at/home/Startseite/aktuelle_Meldungen/Rezeptfreie_Medikamente_im_Internet_Sichere_Online_Apotheken_starten_am_25_Juni
Play it safe - safety logo for mail-order pharmacies:http://www.basg.gv.at/inspektionen/versandapotheken/
Mail-order pharmacy register of the Federal Office for Safety in Health Care: https://versandapotheken.basg.gv.at
Registration for public, Austrian pharmacies:
http://www.basg.gv.at/inspektionen/versandapotheken/registrierung-fuer-antragsstellerinnen-von-versandapotheken/
Queries (technical):
BASG (Federal Office for Safety in Health Care) Dr. Christoph Baumgärtel Tel. 050 555 36004Christoph.Baumgaertel@basg.gv.at
