FDA: Launches Web Site Offering Consumer Advice
The FDA yesterday announced the launch of a new Internet site designed to provide information to those who want to buy prescription medicine over the Internet and to increase public awareness about the potential risks involved with online sales (Neergaard, AP/Philadelphia Inquirer, 12/21). The site, accessible from the FDA's home page, provides information about the department's efforts to crack down on Internet companies that sell drugs without valid prescriptions; tells consumers how to spot health fraud; and offers answers to a list of frequently asked questions about online drug sales (FDA release, 12/20). Part of a "much more aggressive" approach to policing Internet medicine, the FDA site asks consumers to report suspicious vendors and to immediately notify the FDA if any medical problems occur from a product bought online (AP/Inquirer, 12/21).
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