Chemists raise public health concerns over 'unregulated' online pharmacy practices

Mangaluru, 

The one-day nationwide shutdown call also observed by sections of medical shops across Dakshina Kannada and Udupi over online medicine sales is not merely a business protest. Pharmacists say the issue has now grown into a serious public health concern, especially involving misuse of medicines by youngsters through online platforms.

Speaking to News Trail, South Kanara District Chemists and Druggists Association president Arun Kumar Shetty said the problem goes far beyond competition between traditional pharmacies and e-commerce companies. “The issue is much bigger. Youth are using online methods to buy medicines without prescriptions and misusing it. This is a major worry,” he said.

According to pharmacy associations, several medicines that normally require strict prescription verification are increasingly being accessed online with minimal checks. Pharmacists fear this has encouraged self medication, abuse of tablets, repeated use of old prescriptions and unsafe consumption among young users. Arun Kumar Shetty said associations have repeatedly approached the government seeking stricter monitoring and regulation of online medicine platforms. “Several attempts have been made to request the government on this,” he said.

Pharmacists also point to another concern that emerged during the Covid-19 pandemic. Emergency relaxations introduced at the time to help patients receive medicines during lockdowns are now allegedly being misused even after normalcy returned “The option given during Covid time for providing emergency medicine is also being misused,” Shetty added.

Another major concern raised by pharmacists is medicine storage and transportation during transit. Many medicines require controlled temperatures and proper cold-chain maintenance to remain effective. Pharmacists say there are serious questions about whether online deliveries, especially during long-distance transport and extreme weather conditions are consistently maintaining required storage standards. Medicines such as insulin injections, vaccines and certain specialised drugs can lose effectiveness if exposed to unsuitable temperatures during transport.

Local pharmacists argue that improper handling may directly affect patient safety. They also point out that unlike regular consumer products, medicines cannot be treated as ordinary online delivery items. Physical pharmacies not only verify prescriptions, but also guide patients on dosage, warn against dangerous drug combinations and identify obvious misuse in many cases. The growing trend of online medicine purchases has also alarmed healthcare professionals, especially in cases involving antibiotics, sleeping pills, painkillers and psychiatric medicines.

Doctors warn that unsupervised use can lead to addiction, resistance to treatment and serious health complications. At the same time, consumers continue to favour online platforms because of heavy discounts and home delivery convenience. Smaller medical shop owners say they are struggling to compete with deep discounting by large app-based companies. The protest by medical shop owners therefore reflects two parallel concerns survival of neighbourhood pharmacies and the larger question of how safely medicines are being distributed in the digital era.