Monterey, CA Beware Of Buying Prescriptions Online

I wrote a couple of days ago about the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) announcing that it had warned physicians that there is another batch of counterfeit Avastin (a drug used for treating cancer) on the market.  Avastin is one of the most expensive drugs available, at about $2,500 per 400 milligram vial.  One treatment requires at least one vial.  This case involved physicians who were buying illicit drugs from disreputable distributors which were pushing drugs that had absolutely none of the active ingredient which was supposed to be in the product.  The latest issue of AARP The Magazine (February/March 2013 P. 12) is warning readers about a similar problem, this time related to online pharmacies.  The articled said that one online pharmacy recently advertised a generic version of a popular heart medication in a magazine for $35.88 although the normal average retail price is $585.00.  If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is and in this case that's exactly what happened.  They were counterfeit drugs.  The FDA took action against a whopping 4,100 online pharmacies last year, in many cases shutting down sites.  Unfortunately, this business is so lucrative that these sites will likely continue to be reborn with new names, and the FDA will have to continue chasing them down, and then shutting them down.  Please, do not try and bypass traditional pharmacies in order to save money.  Not only do these drugs often not contain the active ingredient they are supposed to, they sometimes contain dangerous ingredients.  To see if a pharmacy is legitimate, check with the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy (nabp.net).