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Statement
For immediate release28 April 2009
PHARMACISTS SHOULD BE ON HIGH ALERT WHENSELLING ORLISTAT, SAYS SOCIETY
The Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain is reiterating to pharmacists the need toadhere to its practice guidance regarding the sale of orlistat, a drug which can only be sold topatients who have undergone a consultation, and who have a Body Mass Index (BMI) of 28 orhigher. The emphasis on the Society’s practice guidance follows two Sunday newspapersreporting cases of pharmacies not complying with regulations around the sale of the drug.Orlistat, known commercially as alli, went on sale as a pharmacy medicine on WednesdayApril 22.The Society’s Director of Policy, David Pruce said: “Both the Society and GSK, whichmanufactures orlistat, developed and disseminated guidance and training resources forpharmacists in anticipation of the medicine’s launch. It is disappointing that some pharmacieshave not followed the guidance. It is important to emphasise the need to closely follow therequirements for selling orlistat.”Both the 26 April editions of the
Sunday Telegraph 
and the
Daily Star Sunday 
conducted‘mystery shopper’ exercises, where women of healthy weight went to a number of pharmaciesto procure orlistat. While some pharmacies conducted consultations and declined to supply themystery shoppers with orlistat, others failed to follow the correct procedure before selling thedrug. The mystery shopper for the
Daily Star Sunday 
told several pharmacists she was buyingorlistat for her overweight mother.
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