Georgia Attorney General Warns of Counterfeit Medicines and Unsafe Online Pharmacies: About 95% of 35,000 Online Pharmacies Operate Illegally
Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr issued a consumer alert in Atlanta on November 12 warning residents about illegal online pharmacies selling counterfeit, expired, or potentially dangerous medications. While buying prescription medication online can be convenient and affordable, the Attorney General's office said, not every online pharmacy is legitimate and some may be dangerous: counterfeit, expired, unapproved, or improperly stored medications sold illegally online may put a consumer's health at serious risk.
Counterfeit medications may contain the wrong ingredients, dangerous contaminants, or deadly substances such as fentanyl, and they span the full range of medicines, from cancer treatments and injectables like Botox and everyday prescriptions to weight-loss and diabetes drugs such as Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro, and Zepbound, the alert said; these websites may also steal personal and financial information. Carr said counterfeit medicines are a widespread problem, with some online pharmacies selling potentially dangerous products, and that his office is committed to protecting the health and safety of all Georgians, urging consumers to only purchase medications from a pharmacy they trust, to do their research, to contact his office if they encounter anything suspicious, and to always question a deal that seems too good to be true.
Of the roughly 35,000 online pharmacies operating worldwide, about 95 percent operate illegally, and fewer than 4 percent comply with U.S. laws and pharmacy standards, according to the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy (NABP) and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has warned that illegal online pharmacies are shipping counterfeit pills made with fentanyl and methamphetamine to unsuspecting American consumers who believe they are buying legitimate medications. The Attorney General's office advised caution with pharmacies that sell prescription medications without requiring a valid prescription, advertise prices that seem too good to be true, lack a verifiable U.S. address or licensed pharmacist, or are not properly licensed to serve Georgia consumers; before buying, consumers can verify a pharmacy's license through the Georgia Board of Pharmacy, check FDA's BeSafeRx website, or use NABP's free Safe Site Search tool, which flags more than 40,000 Not Recommended sites. Suspected illegal pharmacies can be reported to the Georgia Attorney General's Consumer Protection Division, the Federal Trade Commission, the FDA, or NABP.
Source: Georgia Office of the Attorney General
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：位于 Atlanta 的佐治亚州议会大厦。DXR 摄，CC BY-SA 4.0，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / Photo: The Georgia State Capitol in Atlanta. Photo by DXR, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
