Online consumers are using Internet pharmacies to take control of their own medication and to sometimes cut the physicians out of the process. More than 17 million Americans visited Internet pharmacies last quarter, up 14 percent from the same period last year, according to Internet audience measurement service comScore Networks.
Almost two-thirds of these visited online pharmacies that dont require a prescription. Six out of ten respondents that purchased prescription drugs online then never informed their doctor.
Most online consumers also want access to prescription drugs, like the controversial Vioxx, which may have questionable secondary health effects. Sixty-two percent said they thought those should be made available.
Another, even more daring, 38 percent of respondents said they believed they should have access to drugs online even if they arent FDA approved.
Read the full story at the comScore Networks site