With the advent of the digital age, we are no longer required to attend pharmacies and medical stores in person, and rather, we afforded the luxury of ordering them from the comfort of our homes – to our front doors. Buying medical supplies online is, on the whole, quite safe, providing you are sensible and avoid unscrupulous and dangerous websites. Unfortunately, not everyone is astute enough to discern a fraudulent website from a genuine one, which can cause big problems if phoney or improperly made medical supplies are ordered and used.
This page will hopefully alleviate some of the confusion that shrouds buying medical supplies online and will tell you some mistakes to avoid when you are buying medical supplies digitally – whether they be medication, wound dressings, or other medical-related equipment. By following this guide, you will be able to ensure your safety when shopping online and will be able to guarantee that you always buy the genuine article, and never fall victim to organized crime groups that prey on the not-so-digitally-savvy. Online medical fraud is a huge industry and one that nets organized crime groups billions of dollars every single year – so be wary.
Buying medical supplies online, are you? Here are some mistakes to avoid.
Buying Without Research
Everything bought online requires research – unless you are repeatedly buying the same item or have experience with the e-commerce website you are buying from. Buying items without research can yield terrible results. Internet review sites exist solely to notify consumers of unprofessionalism on the part of the seller. If you do not consult reviews or research, you may find yourself buying from a fraudulent seller who sells you phoney products. The medical review specialists of CPOE.org explain that reading reviews and researching can help you to make smart medical decisions. Research everything that you are buying online, consult review sites and be careful.
Too Good to Be True? It Probably Is
When it comes to the internet, while you can get great deals and huge savings, cheap medical supplies are often fraudulent. Medical supplies are expensive to manufacture and produce – and while you can, as just mentioned, find great deals on them, anything that is drastically reduced (shall we say over 50%) is likely a misrepresentation or fraud. When it comes to medication online, sophisticated organised crime gangs mass-produce fake medication, sometimes with harmful chemicals, and sell them at incredibly discounted prices. If you have found a deal online that seems too good to be true – avoid it like the plague.
Unlicensed Pharmacies
Unlicensed pharmacies are often the work of elusive organised crime groups who target and prey on people who are sick and reliant on medication. Unlicensed pharmaceutical websites should be avoided at all costs, lest you wind up very unwell. There have been recorded instances of consumers ingesting poisons sold as pharmaceutical drugs. The groups that mastermind these websites are often the same groups who manufacture and market large quantities of controlled drugs throughout the world. These groups care little for the health of the user of their phoney products and are simply interested in netting as much profit as is possible. You can check out whether or not pharmacies have been licensed through research – and this is definitely something you will want to do when buying any drugs online.
Buying Second-Hand
Buying second-hand medical supplies is another questionable venture. It of course varies on what it is that you are buying. If you are buying a bed, wheelchair, or medical equipment designed to help with mobility, providing the equipment is in good condition (or can be refurbished) you should be okay. It is when you begin purchasing medication and drugs from people second-hand that you enter into a grey area. Technically, buying medication (or selling it on) is considered distribution of a controlled drug – providing it was acquired through a prescription. You should avoid anybody selling their drugs lest you wind up involved in a drug distribution conspiracy or fall victim to fraudulent medication.
Gratuitous Buying
The internet affords us the option to buy more or less anything at any time. Medical supplies, especially during the current global pandemic, are in short supply. Gratuitously buying medical supplies to stockpile is something you should avoid. You could, if you do buy supplies unnecessarily, wind up depriving someone who is desperately in need of the supplies from them. Buy only what you need, and do not feel it necessary to hoard PPE (personal protective equipment), as so many are doing all around the world.
With the help of this page, you should now be better adept at handling online medical supplies. Purchasing medical supplies online can be a risky topic if you are not educated on what is considered a mistake, and what isn’t. This page should have cleared all of that up for you.
