Medications are Cheaper in India, What Should I do?

Wednesday, August 06 2008

You’ve heard those two simple words more times than you can remember: Buy American. But perhaps at no other time in the history of the U.S. have those words taken on the importance they have today.

In this electronic age, it is easier than ever to order your prescription drugs through an established online pharmacy such as this one. And while there are hundreds of legitimate online pharmacies that truly care about the health and welfare of the patient, many do not, and a great number of those are located in countries outside the U.S.

You Get What You Pay For

Internet pharmacies in other countries are much more likely to sell fake or counterfeit drugs to American citizens.  There are many dangers to counterfeit medications, that consumers should be aware of.   If you order from an online pharmacy in the U.S. that requires a prescription, and has a physical address that your pharmaceuticals are being shipped from, your risk is minimal, as you are probably dealing with a reputable, established business. If they are registered with the Better Business Bureau, so much the better. But if you deal with an overseas pharmacy and receive a product that is fake, or that ends up making you sick – or worse – what recourse do you have?

This type of practice can be terrorism of another sort, Internet terrorism. And we are finding out every day how hard it is to track down people in foreign countries and make them pay for their crimes.

So, in other words, you get what you pay for. You may be ordering cheaper drugs, but at what final cost? Horror stories of contaminated medicines, or even the alleged practice of dyeing fake “Viagra” with blue dye in a cement mixer, are becoming all too common. And you could pay with your life by taking a drug that may be tainted. It’s not worth it, when you can deal with a U.S. company that can be contacted if something should go wrong with your order.

It’s Not Just Dangerous, It May Be Against U.S. Law

If you have a doctor’s prescription and the foreign pharmacy asks for it, that’s one thing. But under U.S. law, it is illegal for a foreign online pharmacy to sell prescription drugs to U.S. consumers without a prescription. It is also illegal for a foreign online pharmacy to sell drugs not yet approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Likewise, it is illegal for an off-shore web site to sell controlled substances to U.S. consumers. The foreign sale of controlled substances to U.S. consumers via the Internet is a violation of the United Nations Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotics and Psychotropic Substances.

If the operator of a foreign online pharmacy that illegally sold controlled substances or unapproved drugs to U.S. residents enters the U.S., they could be prosecuted in America. The operators of the site aren’t the only ones that can get in trouble, however; the buyer can also be in hot water. It is illegal under U.S. law for a consumer to order or obtain a controlled substance from an overseas online pharmacy for delivery in the U.S.

Let’s Recap

1. If you buy drugs from a foreign pharmacy and the drugs turn out to be counterfeit or tainted, there is little, if anything, that you can do about it. If you get sick, or worse, you will have only yourself to blame. It’s just not worth the risk.

2. Foreign website operators have nothing to lose by violating laws that say you must have a prescription, that you can’t order controlled substances, or that they can only sell you FDA-approved drugs. But American online pharmacies must follow these rules or risk prosecution.

There is no good reason to order from an overseas online pharmacy when so many reputable ones, such as AccessRx.com, are operating in America. So, certainly in this case, be safe and Buy American.