DOH exhorts pharmacies to ask for prescriptions

The Department of Health has warned pharmacies not to dispense prescription drugs if these are not prescribed by the doctor or else they will face sanctions, a health official said.

 Grace Cardona, Food and Drugs Regulations Officer of the Bureau of Food and Drugs said that any pharmacy selling prescription drugs without doctors’ prescription will face corresponding sanctions if caught.

 Some of the sanctions which Cardona cited are fines ranging from P5,000 up to P100,000 depending on the degree of the offense, or even closure.

 Cardona said that the health department has been strictly monitoring the sale of drugs after reports that some pharmacies are selling prescription drugs even without prescriptions from doctors.

All medications sold can be divided into two categories: Prescription medications that require a prescription to be sold and the nonprescription or over-the-counter medications that do not require a directive from a doctor.

Prescription medications are generally more potent than those sold over the counter and may have more serious side effects if inappropriately used.

In other countries pharmaceuticals fall into one of three classes: prescription-only, over-the-counter and some variation of behind-the-counter.  Consumers do not need a doctor’s approval to buy that last class of drugs but they must speak to a pharmacist first before getting their hands on them.  —Jasmin R. Uy/BRP