Is it safe to order prescriptions online? Yes, says Better Business Bureau of Southern Arizona, but you have to take serious precautions.

Consumers should know the source of their prescriptions to make sure what they are buying is safe. Medicines may be fake, have dangerous ingredients or may not have been checked for safety and effectiveness, or may be labeled, stored, or shipped incorrectly.

There are some red flags to watch for:

• Prices that are too good to be true.
• You can buy the drugs without a prescription.
• The pharmacy company has drugs that are not FDA approved.
• They will ship prescription drugs worldwide.
• Drugs are being shipped from a foreign country.
• Pharmacy is not licensed by a state board of pharmacy in the United States.

According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), only three percent of online pharmacies reviewed by the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy are in compliance with U.S. pharmacy laws and practice standards.

Before buying prescription medicine online peruse the FDA’s website at www.fda.gov/drugs/resourcesforyou. Also, make sure the pharmacy you are contemplating using does the following:

• Requires a valid prescription.
• Provides a physical address in U.S.
• Is licensed by the state board of pharmacy in your state and where the pharmacy is operating.
• Has a state-licensed pharmacist to answer your questions.

It is good to shop prices, just do it with caution. Don’t forget to make sure your insurance company will approve payment to the pharmacy you choose

This entry was posted on Thursday, February 21st, 2013 at 8:49 am and is filed under alert, Life, phishing, scam, Tips. Tags for this post: BBB, Better Business Bureau of Southern Arizona, cheap, dangerous, deal, fake, internet, medication, online, online pharmacy, pharmacy, pills, safe, scam, Tucson. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.