The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says many illegal online pharmacies are selling counterfeit prescription drugs that often are fentanyl or methamphetamine, which can kill unsuspecting consumers. File Photo by Brett Hondow/Pixabay
The search for more affordable medications might cause people to access dangerous counterfeit drugs sold as genuine products by online pharmacies, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warned on Wednesday.
Consumers who order pills from unregulated online pharmacies run the risk of ingesting potentially deadly fentanyl and methamphetamine. Advertisement
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration says many online pharmacies falsely claim to sell prescription drugs at discounted prices without requiring proof of a prescription.
The National Association of Boards of Pharmacy says nearly 95% of websites that offer alleged prescription drugs are illegal operations that don’t follow the standards of state-licensed pharmacies.
Southern District of New York U.S. Attorney Damian Williams on Monday charged Francisco Alberto Lopez Reyes and 17 others for federal offenses arising from selling fentanyl and methamphetamine pills to tens of thousands of victims across the nation.
The consumers did not know they were buying fentanyl or methamphetamine pills, which caused many to suffer deadly accidental overdoses.
Tens of thousands of consumers bought the counterfeit pills through fake online pharmacies run by Reyes and his accomplices in the United States, the Dominican Republic and India. Advertisement
Federal prosecutors accuse the 18 defendants of running a scheme to advertise, sell, manufacture and ship millions of potentially deadly pills that they disguised as genuine pharmaceuticals.
The counterfeit pills caused the deaths of at least nine people.
The CDC says fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that is up to 50 times stronger than heroin and 100 times stronger than morphine.
Consumers can locate legitimate online pharmacies by checking the FDA’s online database.
