[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 114 (Thursday, August 5, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1754-E1755]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           INTERNET PHARMACY CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT OF 1999

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. HENRY A. WAXMAN

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, August 5, 1999

  Mr. WAXMAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to join my colleagues, Ron 
Klink, John Dingell, and Bart Stupak, in introducing the Internet 
Pharmacy Consumer Protection Act of 1999.
  While the Internet is transforming global finance and culture, it is 
also raising novel questions about the practices of medicine and 
pharmacy. There is no question that the World Wide Web and other forms 
of e-commerce have facilitated consumer access to health information 
and products. Patients clearly benefit from the rapid dissemination of 
reliable medical knowledge, and from novel, convenient ways of 
receiving health care.
  But unwary consumers are also increasingly exposed to fraud or 
quackery from anonymous, unaccountable vendors. Illegal, unsafe or 
unapproved drugs and dietary supplements are more widely available than 
ever. Hundreds of offshore and domestic ``pill mills'' dispense Viagra 
or Xenical to patients sight unseen--as well as to shorthair cats, the 
deceased, and patients with life-threatening counterindicated health 
conditions, as an investigation by WWMT of Kalamazoo, Michigan 
discovered.
  On July 30, the Commerce Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations 
held a hearing on online pharmacies. We heard a clear message from the 
testimony of Federal Trade Commission, the Food and Drug 
Administration, the Department of Justice, state authorities like the 
Texas Department of Health, and investigative media--regulators simply 
cannot enforce existing laws to protect consumers from illegal online 
pharmacies unless they know who is responsible and where they are.
  The Internet Pharmacy Consumer Protection Act of 1999 requires very 
simple disclosures from online pharmacies. Tell us your name and place 
of business. Tell us where your pharmacy is licensed. And tell us where 
your online physician, if any, is licensed. That's all.
  With this basic information, regulators are hamstrung. No enforcement 
is possible or requires unsustainable commitments of limited law 
enforcement resources. But enactment of and compliance with this 
legislation would quickly separate legitimate from illegitimate online 
pharmacies.
  Failure to comply with these minimal requirements would also help 
warn consumers from questionable websites. In fact, Congress

[[Page E1755]]

and the Administration are already aggressively encouraging responsible 
online businesses to provide comparable disclosures regarding their 
privacy policies. The lack of licensure and privacy information at an 
online pharmacy should provide a clear warning of caveat emptor.
  Nor does this legislation pose a technical barrier to e-commerce. It 
only asks online pharmacies to provide the same licensure information 
as brick and mortar pharmacies do when they hang framed licenses on the 
wall. It is a simple matter to add a few new links to online pharmacy 
sites. In fact, any person with rudimentary knowledge of HTML could 
write up the necessary information and upload it to a website in a 
matter of minutes.
  The Internet Pharmacy Consumer Protection Act of 1999 is a simple and 
common-sense way to help federal and state authorities enforce existing 
consumer and public health protections. Responsible online pharmacies 
are likely already in compliance with the legislation, or could be in a 
matter of minutes. But illegal, unprofessional or questionable online 
pharmacies will be exposed to greater scrutiny and more susceptible to 
the enforcement of essential legal protections and State licensure 
requirements.
  I urge my colleagues to join us in cosponsoring the Internet Pharmacy 
Consumer Protection Act of 1999.

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