Few ‘Canadian’ Online Pharmacies Based in Canada, FDA-Commissioned Study Finds

Many online pharmacies that claim to sell lower-cost prescription drugs from Canada are operated or owned by individuals or companies in the United States and other nations, according to a study commissioned by the FDA Office of Criminal Investigations, the Washington Post reports. For the study, researchers from Cyveillance, whose clients include three of the largest U.S. pharmaceutical companies, examined about 11,000 Web sites. The study found that only about 1,000 of the Web sites sold prescription drugs and that most of the others referred consumers to sites that did. According to the study, about 86% of the 1,000 online pharmacies were hosted by U.S. companies. The study also found that about 70% of the online pharmacies also were registered to U.S. residents, with more than half of those registered to an unnamed Internet design company in New England. In addition, the study found that 87 of the online pharmacies were hosted by companies in Barbados, many of which had a Las Vegas mailing address. Many of the online pharmacies that claimed to have a Canadian location were registered to individuals or companies in Australia, the Czech Republic, El Salvador, Germany, Mexico and Vietnam, according to the study. Two-thirds of the online pharmacies did not require prescriptions to purchase medications, the study found. The version of the study released to the public did not include information on the 214 legitimate online pharmacies operated by individuals or companies in Canada. FDA Director of Pharmacy Affairs Tom McGinnis said that the agency will not release the information until an investigation is complete.

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McGinnis said, "We want consumers to be aware that when they order online from these sites ... for the most part no one is overseeing that -- not the state boards of pharmacy, not the FDA -- and that they're the ones responsible for taking a look at the quality of these sites and their offerings." McGinnis added that FDA has not received a report of a U.S. resident injured or killed by prescription drugs ordered from a legitimate Canadian online pharmacy. However, the practice remains illegal, McGinnis said. Andy Troszok, president of the Canadian International Pharmacy Association, said that fewer than 300 Canadian online pharmacies sell medications to U.S. residents, all of which require a prescription. Troszok added, "It's somewhat ironic that the FDA is doing this study to find out how many legitimate online pharmacies there are in Canada, but it is not willing to work with us on an accreditation plan to find and certify legitimate sites." Representatives for online and mail-order pharmacies in Canada and the United States said 30 pharmacies that have met the health and safety requirements established by CIPA account for almost 80% of prescription drugs shipped to the United States from Canada (Krebs, Washington Post, 6/14).

Canadian Ambassador Defends Canadian Rx Regulatory System
In related news, Canadian Ambassador Frank McKenna on Monday in an interview said that the Canadian government is in the middle of the debate over whether to allow U.S. residents to purchase prescription drugs from Canada, the AP/Long Island Newsday reports. McKenna said that the Canadian prescription drug regulatory system is stricter than the U.S. system and dismissed concerns about the safety of medications sold in Canada. He said, "We don't want the reputation of our pharmaceutical sector sullied by attacks from the United States of America saying that reimported drugs aren't safe." According to McKenna, the debate over whether to allow U.S. residents to purchase prescription drugs from Canada involves the larger issue of how U.S. medication prices are established. McKenna said of U.S. officials, "Don't think you are doing any favors to us by trying to open the United States market for Canadian drugs because you are not. If you are doing that, you are doing it for your own reasons and you are avoiding dealing with the fundamental question of your drug pricing." However, McKenna acknowledged that companies in other nations could use Canadian Web sites to sell prescription drugs to U.S. residents (Crutsinger, AP/Long Island Newsday, 6/13).