Earlier this month, the Indian Pharmacist Association (IPA) wrote to the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) opposing online pharmacies in India. The DCGI earlier this month appointed industry body FICCI to as the nodal agency to consolidate and frame guidelines for online sales of medicines through e-commerce channels. In its letter, obtained by MediaNama, the IPA outlines some of the issues for the proposal for online pharmacies. The IPA's chief concern is that online pharmacies are in contravention of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act which states that drugs should be dispensed by registered pharmacists. Some of the concerns raised by the IPA include: - As per Section 42 of Pharmacy Act "Only Pharmacist can dispense medicine on the prescription of a doctor." And whoever contravenes these provision is punishable with imprisonment. - There are insufficient numbers of Drug Inspectors in Drug Control Department and it will not be…
