Parliamentarians, regulators, healthcare organisations and patient representatives have called for robust cross-sector action to tackle the growing threat of fake online pharmacies, following a roundtable held at the House of Commons on 22 June.
The event, convened by the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) and chaired by Sadik Al-Hassan MP, chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Pharmacy, brought together senior figures from across the health and technology sectors to discuss how illegal online medicine sales can be disrupted.
GPhC chief executive Kathie Cashell set out the actions the regulator would like to see taken, including search engines and social media companies prioritising registered pharmacies in search results, faster removal of illegal sites and posts, and clearer warnings to users. She also called on payment providers to block transactions from illegal operators and urged more coordinated enforcement across regulators, law enforcement and international partners.
MHRA chief safety officer Dr Alison Cave shared insights into the scale of illegal online medicine sales and action already being taken against criminal networks. The Patients Association said that barriers to accessing care were the primary driver of unregulated online medicine use, while the Royal College of General Practitioners warned that buying medicines from fake online pharmacies was posing a significant risk to patients.
GPhC chair Gisela Abbam OBE said: "Patient safety must come first. Today's discussion marks an important step in strengthening collaboration across the system. By working together, we can make it much harder for illegal operators to reach patients and ensure people can access medicines safely and with confidence."
The GPhC said it will publish a report summarising the discussions and will work with Al-Hassan and the APPG on Pharmacy on next steps.