Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY) is calling for a crackdown on rogue online pharmacies to curtail prescription drug abuse. Senator Schumer’s emphasis is on stopping online pharmacies that sell drugs without a prescription, particularly addictive drugs, such as Adderall and Xanax, which are controlled substances.  We commend Senator Schumer on his actions. Since we first began our own work in 2002, a key requirement for an online pharmacy to be approved in the PharmacyChecker.com Verification Program has been that it require a valid U.S. prescription before dispensing any drug to an American. We also require that any pharmacy selling controlled substances to Americans be based in the U.S. and comply with the Ryan Haight Online Pharmacy Consumer Protection Act of 2008 – legislation intended to curb drug abuse.

This is not Senator Schumer’s first call to arms regarding online pharmacies. In 2006, he co-sponsored the Internet Pharmacy Consumer Protection Act (S. 399), a bill to curb the sale of prescription drugs over the Internet without a valid prescription. A press release from Schumer’s office noted, “the bill is geared to domestic Internet pharmacies that sell drugs without a valid prescription, not international pharmacies that sell drugs at a low cost to individuals who have a valid prescription from their U.S. doctors.” Unfortunately, S. 399 never became law.

Schumer is now calling on the United States Department of Justice and the Drug Enforcement Agency to shut down rogue sites. He also wants credit card companies to block payments to online pharmacies selling prescription drugs without a prescription. Schumer is looking at the issue of online pharmacies as part of a three-part strategy to address prescription drug abuse. According to TimesUnion.com, the senator wants to implement “doctor training, law enforcement and information exchange” in order to combat drug abuse, especially that enabled by illegal online pharmacies.

Shutting down online pharmacies that don’t require prescriptions may not only help stop prescription drug abuse, but it  protects Americans from falling victim to rogue sites. We commend Senator Schumer for understanding and focusing on the real threats that dangerous online pharmacies present to Americans searching online for medication.