The good, the bad, and the ugly: Compliance of e-pharmacies serving India and Kenya with regulatory requirements and best practices.

ABSTRACT: As with most technology-driven change, e-pharmacy markets have expanded faster than the pace of regulation, particularly in low- and middle-income countries. We developed and applied a checklist to assess compliance with best practices and regulations by e-pharmacies serving clients in India and Kenya, two countries with contrasting regulatory environments. We defined e-pharmacies as businesses selling prescription-only medicines directly to consumers through websites or apps. We identified the universe of e-pharmacies through online searches, and captured data using a structured questionnaire (Jan-May 2023). We then assessed e-pharmacies against a set of global 'best practice' standards, as well as national regulations (for Kenya) and 'proposed requirements' from local guidelines and draf

SUBMITTER: Satheesh G 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11790122 | biostudies-literature | 2025

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature