Pharmacy regulators in Ontario clamp down on Internet pharmacy

Drug Store News, July 22, 2002

TORONTO -- In a move to tighten restrictions on unlicensed Internet pharmacy practitioners, the Ontario College of Pharmacists has charged The Canadian Drug Store Inc. and one of its directors with operating an unaccredited pharmacy without registered pharmacists on staff.

The crackdown was the first by the college, according to a report from The Toronto Star. The report cited allegations against the Toronto-based Internet prescription dispenser, which is charged with filling prescriptions written by physicians in the United States for American patients looking for lower drug prices across the border.

Also charged by the college, which acts in a similar capacity to a board of pharmacy in the United States, were a pharmacist, a physician and a local drug wholesaler, according to the Star. Pharmacy regulators in Ontario allege that the three parties supplied The Canadian Drug Store with products for unregulated delivery to U.S. patients.