This week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a public health warning about prescription medications sold by online pharmacies. The public health agency said some online pharmacies could be selling prescription drugs tainted with the potent opioid fentanyl, which can be deadly.
In September, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced an indictment against people managing illegal online pharmacies. According to the DOJ, these individuals are advertising, selling, manufacturing and shipping millions of unregulated counterfeit prescription pills to tens of thousands of Americans. These counterfeit medicines usually contain fentanyl, which means people who take these drugs could be at risk of an overdose.
“The proliferation of fake online pharmacies is fueling this nation’s fentanyl epidemic,” U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said in a press release about the indictment. “At least nine victims who purchased counterfeit pills from the defendants died of narcotics poisoning, including a 45-year-old army veteran who thought she was purchasing real oxycodone.”
The CDC recommends when purchasing from an online pharmacy to make sure it has a U.S. state licensed by the FDA (which consumers can check here). Signs that you’re purchasing a medication from an online pharmacy include not requiring a doctor’s prescription, they lack a licensed pharmacist to answer your questions, and they offer big discounts that seem too good to be true. The CDC also recommends having naloxone on hand, a drug that can reverse opioid overdose, and to call 911 if an overdose occurs.
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