An Auckland pharmacist and his company were yesterday ordered to pay fines and costs of about $50,000 on charges involving the sale of prescription drugs over the internet.
Kerry Donald Bell, 42, and I Chemist Ltd had pleaded guilty in the Auckland District Court to the charges including selling prescription medicines
from premises other than a pharmacy or a hospital, selling prescription medicines without a registered medical practitioner's prescription and publishing a medical advertisement that failed to include information required by regulations.
The Ministry of Health instigated the prosecution after an investigation that began in October 2000 when a ministry officer obtained the obesity drug Xenical from a website operated by Bell.
I Chemist's turnover was about $1 million a month. In November 2000 sales totalled more than $802,000 while in August 2001 sales totalled nearly $1.14 million.
Bell also operated a business in Vanuatu. Medicines imported into Vanuatu from New Zealand were distributed throughout the world.
In November 2000 the export of drugs without prescription from New Zealand was prohibited.
The Vanuatu business was sold and Bell was a consultant. Because of the telephone system in Vanuatu there were difficulties processing transactions entirely in Vanuatu. At Bell's direction parts of the processing were conducted in New Zealand.
For Bell, Raynor Asher, QC, said his client had undertaken to cease any sales in New Zealand and had co-operated with the ministry's investigation.
"The medicines have gone to customers in jurisdictions that have permitted the importation of prescription medicines without prescription for personal use for a certain period of time."
Judge Nicola Mathers ordered Bell to pay costs of $20,000.
