Nevada Pharmacy Board Approves Regulation Allowing Residents To Purchase Medications From Canada
The Nevada State Board of Pharmacy last week voted unanimously to approve regulations that would allow state residents to purchase online preapproved prescription drugs from Canadian pharmacies, the Nevada Appeal reports (Dornan, Nevada Appeal, 4/21). Under the legislation, pharmacists in Canada that have been approved by the Pharmacy Board can fill and mail prescriptions to Nevada residents that are in the Orange Book, a list of U.S.-approved drugs, and in Canada's drug product database, HC-DPD; have been manufactured in accordance with standards under FDA and the Therapeutic Products Directorate of Health Canada; in a strength that appears in the Orange Book and the HC-DPD; and are drawn from a pharmacy's on-site inventory system. Canadian pharmacists cannot dispense a drug that is liquid, injectable or in intravenous form, nor can the drug require refrigeration or other special handling during shipment, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reports (Wells, Las Vegas Review-Journal, 4/21). Louis Ling, a Pharmacy Board lawyer, said four Canadian pharmacies already have been inspected and would be approved to dispense the drugs (Nevada Appeal, 4/21). Supporters of the bill said it will prevent Nevada residents from ordering unsafe prescription drugs from an estimated 11,000 unregulated Web sites that offer cheaper drugs. The board said it will conduct undercover purchases to ensure pharmacists are abiding by regulations among other safety actions. The state Legislative Committee to Review Regulations on May 4 will address the regulation, which must be approved by a legislative committee before it can be enacted (Las Vegas Review-Journal, 4/21).
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