Chemists seek ban on quick commerce sale of prescription drugs
Chemists and Druggists
(
AIOCD
) has written to Union Home Minister Amit Shah seeking urgent action to curb the online sale and instant delivery of prescription medicines by certain e-pharmacies and quick commerce platforms such as Zepto and Blinkit.
In a letter dated August 11, the organisation said these platforms are delivering Schedule H/H1/X (prescription) medicines within minutes - without proper prescription checks - posing a serious
public health risk
and fuelling
drug abuse
, especially among youth.
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The AIOCD highlighted key concerns including the menace of ghost prescriptions, where medicines are prescribed without genuine verification, such as prescriptions issued late at night for distant patients.
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It added there is no prescription monitoring, with habit-forming drugs delivered unchecked, enabling substance abuse.
The AIOCD further warned that easy online access to medicines like Pregabalin could trigger a sharp rise in misuse.
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"Foreign-funded start-ups are treating medicines like ordinary commodities, undermining India's domestic market and causing unemployment," it said.
AIOCD President J S Shinde and General Secretary Rajiv Singhal stressed that while offline chemists face strict regulation, illegal online players remain unchecked, contributing to a 55% surge in drug abuse.
"The misuse of Telemedicine Guidelines to bypass safeguards has worsened the problem," they added.
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