Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Biotech / Medical : PFE (Pfizer) How high will it go? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Anthony Wong who wrote (5798)	10/5/1998 9:49:00 PM
From: Anthony Wong	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 9523

Need Viagra? No Prescription? No Problem Impotence Drug Is Just A Click Away Channel 3000 news Posted 12:55 p.m. October 5, 1998 -- No appointments, no waiting rooms, no doctors. Imagine -- your next order of Viagra is just a click away. All that people need to order the drug is a computer and Internet access, but not necessarily a prescription, reports CBS News Correspondent Roberta Baskin. The drug is used to help impotent men achieve an erection, but there have been some concerns raised over its safety. Since the FDA approved Viagra in April, there have been 69 deaths linked to the drug, CBS News reports. Dr. Neal Barnard, head of Physicians Committee For Responsible Medicine, tells Baskin that he had no idea a person could order Viagra online without a prescription. But, he adds, he isn't that surprised. "You know, more and more doctors really are turning into computers, and their offices are a lot like just cash registers," he tells CBS News. There are many online pharmacies that allow patients to order drugs from a home computer. Most require a prescription to be phoned or faxed in from a doctor, or for a patient to mail a paper prescription to the Internet company. But Baskin says it's easy to stock up on Viagra. Sites selling the drug make sure credit card information is accurate before asking for other patient information. One Viagra site asks the person ordering to answer some basic questions: name, age, address and telephone. Then there are some medical questions: Are you being treated for heart problems? Are you taking any other medications? Do you suffer from impotence? (In case you aren't sure of the right answer, the form reminds you that the drug will only be administered for "erectile dysfunction".) While some sites charge a fee for the online "medical consultation," others promise "no hidden fees." Bill Stallknecht, one of the first to offer a connection to an online doctor, says he sees his business as a new frontier, CBS News reports. "Most medicine practiced anyway isn't face-to-face," says the San Antonio businessman. "It's over the telephone. Patients like the freedom to be able to choose and get services that they are looking for." Still, Texas state regulators have some questions about the ordering practices and are investigating. "I think there are huge concerns," Nancy Dickey, president of the American Medical Association, tells CBS News. The Web site forms may "have similar questions to what your doctor may have asked you. But it is not seeing a doctor. It is bypassing the safety net that was there to protect patients ..." Barnard agrees. "There is no question that, if you can do it with a click of a mouse, all kinds of people who should never be going near Viagra are going to be getting their hands on it, and perhaps paying the price down the road." Additional Resources: American Medical Association American Pharmaceutical Association The Food and Drug Administration The Viagra Web site Need To Order? Lifestyle USA Direct Response The Pill Box For Women Only Fe Mail is an online pharmacy that provides birth control pills, fertility therapy and prenatal vitamins to women -- with a prescription from a physician. Mary Jane Bestor, Channel 3000 Staff Writer channel3000.com