E-pharmacies: Waging A Battle For Survival

Across the globe, e-commerce entities have grown significantly over the last few years.

- Usha Sharma

E-pharmacies too have grown as a result of increasing incidence of chronic diseases, growing tech savviness, increasing demand for convenience, etc. Moreover, the significant discount provided by these entities are also a big lure. Till 2015, getting quality medicines at discounted rates was a dream, but, with the entry of online pharmacies in the Indian marketplace it has become a reality. However, its entry had significant impact on offline players’ business and it was strongly opposed by them. And several times, the apex body of chemists association The All India Organisation of Chemists and Druggists (AIOCD) had called up nationwide strikes against online pharmacies .

The war between online and offline pharmacies have been ongoing for some time and both have tried their best to turn the policy makers and regulators in their favour. In a recent development, the ongoing tussle between online pharmacies and offline pharmacies took a different route when Chennai-based Tamil Nadu Chemists & Druggists Association filed a plea to block links of websites selling medicines online. Their concern was that these sites may sell fake, expired, contaminated, unapproved drugs or otherwise unsafe products that are dangerous to patients and which might put a patient’s health at risk. This led to an interim ban on online pharmacies operating without a license. It has given rise to another dilemma — Are online pharmacies just mediators or full-fledged pharmacy stores?

In the midst of all these happenings, industry experts share their views on the recent developments and offer insights on the way forward for online pharmacies.

e-Pharmacy – Aconsumer perspective

Anil Khanna, Partner, Wisdomsmith Advisors