U.S. Senator Judd Gregg has announced his introduction of a bill to require licensing of all online pharmacies, including those based in Canada, by the FDA. Under the proposed legislation, Canadian pharmacies would be required to have a physical presence in the United States to receive FDA approval.

This legislation may sound good, but let’s be real: It’s clearly designed to prevent U.S. consumers from buying drugs from online pharmacies, period. Why should Canadian pharmacies be forced to set up a presence in the U.S. when they are regulated by their own government — and these regulations are just as strict as those of the FDA? Senator Gregg is well aware that this is not going to happen.

Despite the efforts of Big Pharma and its bought-and-paid-for Washington politicos to scare people away from using safe, licensed Internet pharmacies, more and more Americans are buying their drugs online. According to Clickz.com, online drug sales have grown from $3.2 billion in 2003 to $13.8 billion in 2007.

In addition to receiving licencing from their home countries, pharmacies in the eDrugSearch.com database are vetted by third-party accrediting organizations. These include the Internet and Mail Order Pharmacy Accreditation Commission (IMPAC), Canadian International Pharmacy Association (CIPA), Verified Internet Pharmacy Practice Sites (VIPPS), Manitoba International Pharmacists Association (MIPA), National Community Pharmacists Association (NCPA), and the Better Business Bureau Online (BBBOnline).

Links to these accreditation sources can be found at the Online Pharmacy Regulations page here at eDrugSearch.com.