Good news for PLRX
Please read the whole news release! PLRX is licensed in all 50 states & works with Doctors to fill prescriptions.
Friday October 22, 4:44 pm Eastern Time
Illinois files lawsuits against online pharmacies
CHICAGO, Oct 22 (Reuters) - Illinois state prosecutors said Friday they filed lawsuits against four Internet pharmacies, alleging the companies illegally and dangerously sell prescription drugs over the Internet without a medical exam.
Illinois Attorney General Jim Ryan filed the suits on Thursday against out-of-state Internet companies, their operators, as well as associated doctors and pharmacies, charging they are doing business in Illinois without proper licenses.
Illinois is the third state in the country to file such lawsuits, joining Kansas and Missouri. In July, the U.S. House Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations held a hearing on the subject of Internet sales of prescription drugs.
In a statement, Ryan said the companies are offering to sell the impotency drug Viagra, the diet drug Xenical, the anti-baldness drug Propecia and other popular prescription drugs. The Web sites allegedly provide the medications to consumers who simply sign a waiver of liability and answer a limited number of medical questions. Consumers' credit cards are charged for the medication, as well as ``consultation fees' of up to $75.
Ryan is seeking an injunction to keep the defendants from advertising, selling, prescribing and dispensing prescription medications to Illinois consumers without licensing. He is also asking a $50,000 penalty be imposed, and an additional $50,000 for each fraudulent transaction.
``Prescription medicines should only be dispensed under the care and supervision of properly licensed doctors and pharmacies,' Ryan said. ``We are alleging that these defendants were ignoring the law and putting any consumer who has a computer and a modem at risk.'
Many prescription drugs carry warnings. For example, Pfizer Inc.'s (NYSE:PFE - news) blockbuster drug Viagra should not be taken along with nitrate-based heart drugs, and Merck & Co. Inc.'s (NYSE:MRK - news) Propecia carries a warning that the drug may cause birth defects if used or even handled by a pregnant woman.
The Web sites named in the suits are http//:www.expressrx.net, http//:www.expresstoday.com, http//:www.mdhealthline.com, and http//:www.rxclinic.com.
PlanetRx.com (NasdaqNM:PLRX - news), one of only three online pharmacies approved by the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy trade group, supported Ryan's move. PlanetRx.com does not itself prescribe drugs, rather it works with doctors and fills prescriptions. It is licensed in all 50 states.
``We would prefer that there are not these (unauthorized) sites out there,' said Stephanie Schear Tilenius, co-founder of PlanetRx, and vice president of sales and business development. ``It's not safe for consumers and it tarnishes the industry.'
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