Chua: Don’t buy drugs online

Star: SUBANG JAYA: Malaysians have been told to stop making online purchases of medication because the products may be fake.
Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek said the ministry was concerned with the new trend which has seen the number of online medicine sales and purchases growing by the day.
“We are advising the public not to be so naive as to believe all that is stated about the product in online advertisements. Using these drugs involves high risks because the information on the effects might be false, while the medication might be fake,” he said.
He said the medication available over the Internet included prescription drugs meant for those suffering from diabetes and hypertension, anti-histamines and painkillers.
“But a large number of products that are bought online are lifestyle drugs such as sexual performance enhancers for men, and for the women it is beauty and anti-ageing products,” he told reporters after launching the Seminar on Counterfeit Pharmaceuticals: A Global Perspective here yesterday.
Dr Chua said the ministry suspected that people bought the drugs over the Internet out of convenience as they did not need to visit a doctor or pharmacy or require a prescription to buy the medication, which are also usually cheaper.
He said the ministry had not received complaints from those who had bought the products, but suspected that this was because of the nature of Malaysians who did not complain even when they were cheated.
He said although the ministry had adequate provisions under the law to take action against those selling drugs over the Internet, it was difficult to trace the owners of the websites, who were often based overseas.
Pharmaceutical Services Division director Datuk Mohd Zin Che Awang said enforcement officers under the division traced one website operator each in Kedah and Penang about two years ago and took action against them.
“The two sites used ‘dot com dot my’ at the end of their URL and we were able to trace them from there, but all the companies that we have checked on the Internet since then use ‘dot com’ and we cannot trace them,” he said.
Mohd Zin said the division was also worried that the companies involved might also be trading in psychotropic pills, andthere was nothing to stop their illegal activities.