title: Online, direct-to-consumer access to insulin: patient safety considerations and reform.
abstract: The online, direct-to-consumer (DTC) medical marketplace is proliferating more rapidly than regulation is evolving to ensure proper patient safety and public health controls. Along with this growing body of unrestrained medical testing and pharmaceuticals offered DTC online, most types of insulin and insulin administration products may now be purchased without prescriptions or physician guidance. Given the relatively significant risks of insulin use, the abuse potential, the high prevalence of diabetes mellitus, and the rising population of uninsured and underinsured, it is imperative to reform the online DTC medical marketplace to ensure that patient safety and public health are protected.
authors.affiliation: Kaiser Permanente, San Diego, CA, USA. klovett@ucsd.edu
authors.forename: Kimberly M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Lovett
authors.forename: Bryan A
authors.initials: BA
authors.lastname: Liang
authors.forename: Timothy K
authors.initials: TK
authors.lastname: Mackey
mesh_terms: D000329:Advertising / Q000941:ethics / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D006801:Humans; D007004:Hypoglycemic Agents; D007328:Insulin; D061214:Patient Safety / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D060946:Pharmaceutical Services, Online / Q000941:ethics / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D063487:Prescription Drug Misuse; D055553:Prescription Drugs; D014481:United States; D014486:United States Food and Drug Administration
chemical_list: D007004:Hypoglycemic Agents; D007328:Insulin; D055553:Prescription Drugs