ADAP Advocacy and the Partnership for Safe Medicines (PSM) have issued a joint warning to pharmacists that discounted HIV products bought from online pharmacy-to-pharmacy (P2P) marketplaces are considered suspect product under U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) guidelines and the Drug Supply Chain Security Act. The organizations urge pharmacies to avoid these platforms and treat any HIV medicines purchased from them as suspect, requiring quarantine and verification before dispensing.
According to PSM's Executive Director, Shabbir Imber Safdar, deeply discounted HIV products sold on the internet by unknown sellers who cannot provide a pedigree meet several FDA risk criteria for illegitimacy. These include deep discounts, an established pattern of fraud in the HIV drug supply chain over the past six years, unknown sellers, and incomplete transaction histories. Once received, damaged packaging often confirms the product needs to be quarantined and investigated.
While online P2P marketplaces can help pharmacies manage inventory, they also pose risks of suspicious sales. Dispensers are required to quarantine and investigate suspect products, and report illegitimate products to the FDA and partners within 24 hours.
Brandon M. Macsata, CEO of ADAP Advocacy, highlighted additional risks from informal trading platforms. He noted that independent pharmacies sometimes trade stock in less formal settings such as WhatsApp or Telegram, which are even more vulnerable and never advisable. He strongly urged pharmacists to heed the warning and avoid exposing patients to unnecessary risks.
The warning issued by ADAP Advocacy and PSM is available online at https://www.safemedicines.org/diverted-hiv-meds-on-p2p-platforms. The organizations emphasize that patients living with HIV/AIDS are potentially being put at risk by these diverted medicines, and pharmacists must take immediate action to protect them.
