Patients in the European Union (EU) will now be able to easily identify legally operating online medicine retailers. To help them identify trustworthy sites, an EU-wide logo will appear on the websites of online retailers that are registered in an EU Member State.

When clicking on the logo, patients will be taken to the online register of the national competent authority that lists all legally operating online retailers in that country. This system is currently being implemented across the EU Member States.

The European Medicines Agency (EMA) has published a webpage with links to the national registers.

"When buying medicines online, consumers must be aware that unless they buy from legally-operating online medicine suppliers, they run the risk of buying falsified medicines, which are usually ineffective, substandard and dangerous. The Commission has established a common logo for online medicines retailers so consumers can stay safe," explained Vytenis Andriukaitis, European Commissioner for Health and Food Safety.

For more details, go to: http://www.ema.europa.eu/ema/index.jsp?curl=pages/news_and_events/news/2015/07/news_detail_002358.jsp&mid=WC0b01ac058004d5c1