Unused prescription drugs regularly sold on eBay: BBC Report

Patients in UK were illegally selling off unused prescription drugs on eBay, an investigation has found.

A seller was caught trying to sell an arthritis medication he no longer needed for £250 a box. According to experts there was a black market in prescription drugs which was putting patients at risk and costing the National Health Service (NHS) thousands of pounds.

Under the law only a GP, hospital doctor, specialist nurse or pharmacist could hand out prescription medication.

However, the BBC's Inside Out revealed that potentially dangerous drugs were being routinely sold on eBay.

An undercover reporter bought four boxes of an erectile dysfunction jab Claverject for a total of £24, or £6 each.

According to commentators, the drug cost the NHS £500 a year and patients might well be continuing to request them from GPs only to sell them online.

Another person sold a reporter the specialist arthritis drug Enbrel for £250 a box, which cost the NHS £10,000 a year.

According to a spokesman for the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), the drugs regulator, the practice was putting patients at risk.

"Medicines are not ordinary consumer goods - and appropriately, strict legal controls apply to their sale and supply.

"Prescription medicines are ''prescription only'' for good reason - and should only be prescribed by doctors or approved healthcare professionals, based on clinical judgment, to ensure patients are getting the right treatment and monitor progress or deal with adverse reactions.

"Selling medicines, other than through a legitimate supply chain, is both illegal and poses unquestionable risks to the patient.

"Medicines have the ability to harm as well as cure - use them as directed by a healthcare professional."