NABP Awards First VIPPS™ Seals To On-line Pharmacies

NABP awarded its first Verified Internet Pharmacy Practice Sites (VIPPS™) seals earlier this month to planetRx, Merck-Medco Rx Services, and drugstore.com, each of which is now authorized to display the VIPPS seal on their Web site and maintain a link from the seal to NABP's VIPPS Web site.

"Each of these on-line pharmacy operations were able to satisfy VIPPS' rigorous 17-point Internet pharmacy practice criteria, demonstrate appropriate compliance with state licensure, and pass an on-site visit from VIPPS inspection teams who visited the applicants' headquarters and fulfillment centers to review and verify compliance with VIPPS criteria," said NABP President Dyke Anderson. "These pharmacies have demonstrated consumers can use their Internet services with confidence."

The VIPPS certification process begins with the submission of a completed VIPPS Application Form and supporting documentation. Submitted materials contain essential information such as the applicant's business name, ownership, address and phone number, and Web site address, and document adherence to VIPPS criteria. Such criteria include maintaining and following written policies and procedures for drug utilization review, patient counseling, patient confidentiality, and quality improvement programs.

After an evaluation of the applicant's submitted materials, a written evaluation is issued to the applicant and a site inspection is scheduled.

During a site inspection, VIPPS inspectors:

• Investigate issues arising from the evaluation of the applicant's submitted information;
• Review the most current state inspection report;
• Confirm that policies and procedures reviewed during evaluation of the VIPPS application are available to and used by members of the on-line pharmacy staff, and that staff members are trained to use them;
• Collect new, revised, or additional policies and procedures supporting VIPPS criteria;
• Probe and test problem resolution and contingency plans; and
• Identify strong and weak areas or departments for internal monitoring.

"Site visits by the VIPPS inspection team are an integral part of the VIPPS certification process," noted Anderson. "Inspections verify for NABP what the on-line pharmacy has told us in its application for VIPPS certification."

Upon completion of the site visit, inspectors submit a report of their findings to NABP, including deficiencies and recommended corrective actions. A written report is then issued to the applicant. If deficiencies are noted, the report includes recommendations for VIPPS criteria compliance. If the review is satisfactory, the report confirms VIPPS certification. "VIPPS applications continue to be received at NABP headquarters," said NABP Executive Director/Secretary Carmen A. Catizone. "Our staff is currently reviewing and responding to submitted applications. We expect to schedule several more site visits within the next few weeks."

PlanetRx, headquartered in South San Francisco, California, has been on-line since March of this year. Led by Bill Razzouk, former executive vice president for Federal Express, planetRx is licensed to ship prescriptions to all 50 states. Its Web site can be accessed at http://www.planetrx.com/.

Merck-Medco Rx Services has 13 mail service pharmacies located in nine states. In 1998, Merck-Medco unveiled Merck-Medco Managed Care Online™ (http://www.merck-medco.com/) that gives eligible health plan members access to their pharmacy benefit information and services, including the ability to order mail service prescription refills through the Internet. The main Merck-Medco Web site averages nearly three million hits per month.

Located at http://www.drugstore.com/, drugstore.com, inc. opened for business in February 1999. This company has formed strategic relationships with key Internet leaders, including America Online, Inc., Excite, Yahoo! and Netscape NetCenter. Drugstore.com is a component of a larger corporation that includes Amazon.com, OnHealth, ThirdAge, Medscape, Intelihealth and Women.com. Based in Bellevue, Washington, the company is headed by President and Chief Executive Officer Peter Neupert, a former senior Microsoft executive. Drugstore.com is funded by Amazon.com, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, Maveron LLC, and Liberty Media.

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