New bill proposed to limit illegal prescription drug sales on Web

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. In an effort to limit sales of illegitimate prescription drugs on the web, the Senate passed “The Ryan Haight Online Pharmacy Consumer Protection Act of 2008,” with support from Go Daddy.com, according to published reports.

The bill’s purpose is to require that all web-based companies that sell prescription drugs can only dispense the drugs to those that have a valid prescription along with an examination by a health care provider.

The bill was supported fully by the Go Daddy network, which is known as the world’s largest paid Web hosting provider as well as No.1 domain registration company.

A study conducted by The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University also cited that in 2007, 84 percent of web sites that sell medications did not ask for a valid prescription, further support of the importance of the bill.

Go Daddy’s chief executive officer and founder Bob Parsons voiced the company’s rally behind the bill in saying, “Go Daddy applauds any action to help reduce the number of rogue Internet pharmacies that are either selling controlled substances without a valid prescription, or selling illegal or counterfeit prescriptions over the Web. This legislation will give us the ability to be proactive when we are made aware of Internet pharmacy sites that do not comply with registration requirements.”

The bill, named after Ryan Haight, a teenager who overdosed on Vicodin he had purchased on the Web, is now awaiting action from the House of Representatives, according to Go Daddy.