Ask the Vet North Laurel Animal Hospital - We Care!
Emergency Information
NLAH is an AAHA Accredited Practice AAHA Accredited9105 All Saints Rd., Laurel, MD 20723   •   301-953-7387   •   410-792-2692   •   Hours  •   Contact Us

 

FDA Warning on Internet Pharmacies

A Note on Internet Pharmacies

The FDA has strictly cautioned against using unlicensed internet pharmacies as they pose a signifigant health risk to your pet. For more information please read the following article from the FDA website:

At the North Laurel Animal Hospital (NLAH), it is our policy to take every possible step to ensure that our patients receive the very best pharmaceutical products available. This is especially important with life-threatening illnesses such as heartworm disease. However, we understand and empathize with the desire to find products cheaper. We know that several catalogue houses presently sell these products cheaper than we are able to. If you wish, we will gladly write prescriptions for your pet for these products in lieu of selling them here. We do, however wish for your decision to be an informed decision, and want you to know several things regarding catalogue house prescription sales:

  1. All major manufacturers maintain a strict policy of sales exclusively through licensed veterinarians. All catalogue house sales are through non-approved channels.
  2. Most guarantees that manufacturers make regarding their products are null and void if their products are purchased through non-approved channels.
  3. Pharmaceuticals manufactured and labeled for use in other countries (namely Australia) have been illegally diverted and sold through these discount houses in the United States.
  4. Discount houses have been cited by the FDA and State Boards of Pharmacy for violating prescribing procedures. PetMedExpress (a.k.a. SaveMax), in particular, was recently fined over $100,000.00 by the FDA and Florida Department of Health. This particular discount house has also recently been sued by the Texas Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners and the Texas Pharmacy Board.
  5. Our products come with a person to help you utilize them in the most efficient manner. For example, we do not charge for recheck exams/consults for flea control if a prescription flea control product was purchased here.
  6. Shipping charges, delays, mis-shipments, and damaged products are several of the reasons that many clients feel that the hassles of dealing with the catalogue houses are not worth the savings.
  7. Understand that the sales of many of our retail products help subsidize the cost of other services at the hospital, namely many emergency and rarely used drugs.

If you prefer to purchase your products at catalogue houses, we will gladly write prescriptions for these products according to the following guidelines:

  1. All state and federal prescribing laws apply, the same as if you purchase it here.
  2. To avoid any potential doctor-patient confidentiality issues, we will not communicate with the discount house in any form or fashion.
  3. It is your responsibility to ensure that the prescription is sent, filled, labeled, shipped, and used correctly. The discount houses have a reputation for poor customer service, and we cannot be expected to take the time to oversee their operations.
  4. We will not become involved in any product failure issues for products purchased through these discount houses. This includes flea, heartworm, and intestinal parasite prevention.