Libby Baney, Executive Director for the Alliance for Safe Online Pharmacies talks about the current state of rogue online pharmacies and efforts to curb them.

1. The Impact of Fake
Online Pharmacies on
Patient Safety
Libby Baney, J.D., Executive Director, ASOP
Partnership for Safe Medicines Interchange
September 18, 2014

3. What We Know: Data
• 40,000-50,000 active online drug sellers
operating globally (LegitScript)
• 97% of online drug seller sites are operating
in violation of applicable laws (NABP)
• 50% of the prescription medicines sold online
by websites that hide their physical address
are counterfeit (WHO)

4. What We Know: Data
Illegal online drug sellers are the most frequent
conduit of counterfeit drugs (NABP)
23% of adult Internet consumers surveyed
have bought prescription medicine online (US
FDA)
Illegal online drug sellers can make $1 million
and $2.5 million in sales each month (MIT)

5. Risks to Patient Safety:
Illegal online drug sellers:
1. Sell prescription-only medicines
without a valid prescription.
2. Sell unapproved, adulterated,
misbranded or counterfeit drugs
3. Do not have the required
pharmacy license in
the jurisdictions it ships drugs to.

6. Headlines from August and September 2014

7. Examples of Patients Harmed
Lorna Lambden
No medical exam; bought unapproved sleeping pills
Died from drug interaction
Marcia Bergeron
Fake drugs bought from illicit online pharmacy
Heavy metal poisoning (lead, titanium, arsenic)
Steven Kovacs
Bought prescription drugs online without a prescription
Overdosed and died / no medical supervision

8. So, where is the bright side?

9. Five Signs We Are Making An Impact

10. Five Signs We Are Making An Impact
1. Internet commerce companies agree to take voluntary
action against illegal online drug sellers
• Visa issues Internet Pharmacy Guide for Acquirers
• CSIP issues Principles of Participation
• Realtime Register B.V. (Netherlands) changes practices
Top 10 Registrars Harboring Rogue Pharmacies
1. TodayNIC (China)
2. BizCN (China)
3. Gransy (Czech Republic)
4. Joker.com (Germany)
5. Momentous Group/Rebel.com (Canada)
6. Paknic (Pakistan)
7. WebNIC.cc (Malaysia)
8. Dattatec (Argentina)
9. IPMirror (Singapore)
10. Domain.com (US)

11. Five Signs We Are Making An Impact
2. Transatlantic IPR Working Group prioritizes Internet
pharmacies
3. APEC creates an Internet Sales Working Group
• ASOP helps lead engagement with 21 economies

12. Five Signs We Are Making an Impact
4. DotPharmacy launches (Fall 2014)
5. ASOP raises public awareness
• ASOP issuing a CME/CPE program with the Federation of State
Medical Boards
• ASOP and CSIP run a search advertising campaign:
5.5+ million hits to date
• ASOP speaks at 20+ events annually

13. ASOP is a nonprofit organization with the mission to protect patient safety globally
Federation of State Medical
Boards
National Health Council
National Association of
Boards of Pharmacy
PhRMA
Partnership for Safe
Medicines
Rx-360
APhA
LegitScript
Amgen
Merck
Boehringer Ingelheim
Men’s Health Network
Consumer Healthcare
Information Corp
NACDS
Eli Lilly & Company
NeedyMeds
ASOP Observers
MEMBERS
EAASM
NOVA ScriptCentral
GPhA
Takeda
International Pharmaceutical
Federation
Italian Medicines Agency
Partnership for Drug-Free
Kids
U.S. Pharmacopeia
Convention