By Karen Kier, Pharmacist
On behalf of the ONU HealthWise team

In 1967, Walt Disney released The Jungle Book movie based on Rudyard Kipling’s book. Robert and Richard Sherman wrote the song Trust in Me (The Python’s Song) for the movie release. 

Kaa, the snake, sings the song to Mowgli to hypnotize him and wrap his coils around him. He is stopped from hurting Mowgli by the tiger Shere Khan.

This part of the movie is a good example of who should we trust? The snake?

Unfortunately, there are some unscrupulous people and businesses in healthcare who should not be trusted. Deception can result in a significant risk to public health. 

On October 2, 2024, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released an important warning to the public about counterfeit prescription medications from online pharmacies. This warning comes after a September 30, 2024 action by the United States Department of Justice charging 18 defendants suspected of running illegal and fraudulent pharmacies.

These defendants have been operating an illegal prescription service online in India, the Dominican Republic and the United States. The indictment states these individuals are advertising, selling, manufacturing, and shipping millions of unregulated counterfeit prescription pills to tens of thousands of U.S. citizens.  

Here is the scariest part! These pills do not contain the labeled prescription medication, but rather contain the synthetic opioid known as fentanyl. Fentanyl is 50 times stronger than heroin and 100 times stronger than morphine.  These counterfeit pills can easily cause a fatal overdose caused by the fentanyl.  At least 9 Americans have died from these fraudulent pills.  

So, who can you trust?

The U.S. Department of Justice recommends to follow tips from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). These include making sure the pharmacy has a physical address and telephone number in the U.S. and are licensed in the state they are operating in as well as have a state-licensed (registered) pharmacist on staff that you can talk to. In addition, all medications including opioids require a legal prescription from a physician, nurse practitioner or physician’s assistant depending on the state laws for prescribing.

BeSafeRx is an FDA program to help identify if an online pharmacy is legal in the United States and also your state. You can enter the pharmacy information into their website to get confirmation about online pharmacies.  The website is https://www.fda.gov/drugs/quick-tips-buying-medicines-over-internet/besa... Ohio State Board of Pharmacy will refer you to the BeSafeRx program to verify information for our state. 

If you choose to use an online pharmacy, please check with the FDA, the State Boards of Pharmacy or your local healthcare professionals to assure they are licensed and safe. This includes many different medications being advertised on television, radio, social media and newsprint.  

The CDC is also recommending for households to have naloxone (Narcan) available as an overdose reversal drug for any potential emergency of an unknown substance. Naloxone is available without a prescription and there are many free distributions sites. ONU HealthWise is part of Project DAWN (Deaths Avoided With Naloxone) and offers free naloxone. Contact the pharmacy for more information.  

Avoid the snakes and trust your local healthcare professional for more information and be safe with online vendors!

ONU Healthwise is offering flu and COVID-19 vaccine clinics Monday - Friday from 2:00 - 6:00 p.m. 

ONU HealthWise Pharmacy
419-772-3784
www.onuhealthwisepharmacy.com