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Swadeshi Jagran Manch (SJM), an affiliate of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), has expressed concern about Aarogya Setu, a mobile application for monitoring coronavirus disease (Covid-19) developed by the National Center for Informatics.
On Thursday, the SJM said it has written to the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) and the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, raising concerns about allowing e-pharmacies, including Aarogya Setu Mitr, to sell drugs in the country.
“A government-owned web application should not be allowed to perform an activity that is illegal. There are more than seven lakh chemicals in the country, which will be seriously affected by allowing e-commerce platforms to sell medicines, “said Ashwani Mahajan, SJM’s national coordinator.
On Monday, the government allowed the sale of medicines and also sought medical advice on Arogya Setu by launching the Aarogya Setu Mitr portal.
Developed on a public-private partnership model between the government and the Swasth Foundation, Project StepOne, the Tata Bridgital Health and Tech Mahindra health initiative, Connectsense Telehealth, the platform offers teleconsultation and home delivery of medications and outcomes. laboratory tests.
The portal collects the IP address, postal code and details of the user’s mobile phone device. Companies like 1mg, Dr Lal Pathlabs, Metropolis, SRL Diagnostics and Thyrocare are engaged in home lab testing, while Netmeds, PharmaEasy, 1mg and Medlife have been chosen to deliver medications and lab test results.
A government official, who is involved with the app and its back-end operations, said that since public health was the main reason for the app, the next logical step was telemedicine. “We wanted to offer a 360 degree solution to users under blocking restrictions. The Center has identified the sale of drugs on e-commerce sites as an essential service, “said the official.
Yash Aggarwal, legal chief of the Southern Chemicals and Distributors Association in New Delhi, also criticized the move. He cited an order from the Delhi High Court in December 2018 that suspended the online sale of medicines without a valid license. “It is illegal to sell drugs online. On March 26, the Union ministry of health allowed the home delivery of drugs with some conditions that make the online sale of drugs legal in the country,” said Aggarwal.
Prashant Tandon, 1 mg, whose company is delivering lab test results and drugs at the doorstep, said they have no access to a patient’s data. “Data management for e-pharmacies is defined and infringements invite action. The electronic pharmacy can assess the prescription, and there is a clear audit trail for digital transactions. The regulator can track drug sales on our platforms transparently, which some offline vendors, however, do not maintain, “Tandon said.
He said that e-pharmacies cannot sell List X drugs. “List X drugs, like narcotics, are not sold online as the draft rules for e-pharmacies do not allow them,” he said.
Aggarwal also noted that when users click on the link on the Aarogya Setu Mitr portal to buy drugs, it takes them to an external website, which is owned by a private company.
“There are also security and privacy issues. How can we allow a private company to collect classified information about a person? Agarwal asked, demanding that the government immediately suspend online drug sales.
In a letter to Chief Scientific Adviser K Vijay Raghavan and NITI Aayog Executive Director Amitabh Kant, Aggarwal said: “The notification issued by the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare leaves no doubt that the handover to Domicile was never allowed under the Drug and Cosmetic Rules, 1945, and electronic pharmacies operated against the law before notification was issued. However, even this notification has not given them the legal right to operate and deliver the medications at home. “
“This notification is valid only in extraordinary times such as the Covid-19 pandemic. For the most part, pharmacies act as aggregators, which is not permitted under the notice, since a valid license must be issued under the Drug and Cosmetic Rules, 1945. Delivery of medications must also be done by a holder of license in the same fiscal district, which also makes it clear that these rules are not intended for electronic pharmacies, “added the letter.
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