What kind of doctors work for no-prescription pharmacies?
Many rogue online pharmacies aren’t technically “no prescription” pharmacies — because they do have physicians on hand who write prescriptions for patients based on what are called “remote consultations.”
These online consultation pharmacies work with doctors who review a patient’s self-reported medical history — generally based on the completion of an online questionnaire — and then write a prescription in response to the patient’s request. U.S. states have different laws on what constitutes a valid doctor-patient consultation. However, as PharmacyChecker.com reports:
The American Medical Association and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration have issued statements asserting that remote consultations are a substandard medical practice when there is no prior doctor-patient relationship, one established by an in-person physical exam.
No Prescription Needed does not permit online consultation pharmacies to be members of our network. While the standards of these pharmacies are higher, on the whole, than those of pharmacies that require no prescription at all, they still do not meet the safety standards that you deserve — and should demand — as a patient.
As has been reported by the Washington Post and others, online consultation pharmacies have a tendency to attract doctors with substance abuse problems, a history of malpractice, and a variety of financial woes.
The Post checked the background of prescribing physicians and found the following:
A Colorado doctor had a history of alcohol abuse. An Arkansas doctor was being treated for bipolar disorder and drug dependency. A Florida doctor had twice been cited for providing inadequate care to elderly patients, one of whom died. A Texas doctor was under investigation by the FBI for suspected Medicare fraud and later committed suicide. A California doctor was disciplined for operating under a fictitious name. A North Carolina doctor had held 22 jobs in five years.
Pharmacy site operators use Web sites like this one to recruit doctors in need of cash.
Don’t be fooled by a pharmacy that claims to distribute valid prescriptions over the Web. The only legitimate prescription is one your doctor writes for you after an in-person consultation.
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