The Hindu Business Line : Pharma cos in a spot as Web sites hawk drugs

Drugs from a host of Indian companies, such as Ranbaxy, Dr Reddy's, Cipla, Cadila and Lupin Laboratories, are available to consumers with just the click of a mouse.

New Delhi , April 14

AS if the opposition to cheap generic drugs in the US was not enough, Indian pharma companies now have to contend with Internet Web sites illegally selling their products.

Drugs from a host of Indian companies, such as Ranbaxy, Dr Reddy's, Cipla, Cadila, Lupin Laboratories and several others, are available to consumers with just the click of a mouse. They can be ordered online and are delivered at the customer's doorstep.

And to make matters worse, some Indian companies do not seem to be fully aware of the implications of this practice. "We have just started hearing about these Web sites, we are yet to study the issue," said Mr J.P Parswani, Vice-President (Marketing), Cadila Pharmaceuticals.

Meanwhile, Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd has written to www.look4generics.com, a pharmacy Web site, asking it to stop selling its drugs. Pfizer also recently filed a lawsuit against the Web site to stop the sale of its generic version of cholesterol-busting drug Lipitor.

The Website, in fact, boasts of sourcing drugs from leading Asian pharmaceutical companies. "Companies we buy from are Ranbaxy, Cipla, Dr Reddy's," it said.

The Indian pharmaceutical industry, too, is concerned about the growing trend. According to Mr D.G. Shah, Secretary General, Indian Pharmaceutical Alliance (IPA), "This is a cause for concern. If the Web sites sell counterfeit drugs, then it will hurt the reputation of the Indian companies. Indian drug companies have built up a reputation by offering quality drugs at low prices."

A Ranbaxy spokesperson said the company has no agreements with the Web site. He also added that it is extremely difficult for the company to keep track of these pharmacy sites and therefore, monitoring the quality of drugs sold through them is extremely difficult. The Indian industry, however, cannot do much to curb the problem as the regulatory mechanism is under the purview of the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

The Indian pharma industry also does not want to be on the wrong side of the US laws by pushing for sales through Web pharmacies. "We do not violate any norms in the US. If there is a business opportunity for us by selling drugs online, then we could consider it. But we will do so only under the prescribed norms," said Mr Parswani.

Currently, there is a debate in the US on the issue of selling drugs online as there is potential for selling illegal drugs, which do not have appropriate approvals or prescriptions. Also, industry analysts said that hawking drugs through Web sites could lead to patent infringements.

According to reports, the Internet pharmacy sales in the US is expected to touch $5 billion this year, up from last year's $1.7 billion.

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