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Is Viagra too easy to get? Posted 7-6-98 It's hard to deny the allure of the little blue pill. And according to reports, hardly anyone has to. Viagra can be readily obtained from family physicians and urologists and some walk in clinics will dispense Viagra to off-the-street patients after a brief physical exam. Numerous web sites sell the drug on the basis of a credit card number and a few key strokes. One reason it is so easy to get a prescription is because impotence is a patient related problem, said James Barada, MN, director of the Center for Male Sexual Health in Albany New York. Any man armed with three or four buzz words could walk away from most physicians with a Viagra prescription in hand, he said. Barada, a urologist, writes about twenty new prescriptions a week, but only after conducting an in-person consultation to discuss contra-indications and weed out thrill-seekers. Nonetheless, he said, Viagra represents a safe and effective option for 90 percent of his patients who request it. "For ten bucks -- the cost of a movie and popcorn -- you get an evening's worth of entertainment," he added. Web sites can charge $50 to $100 or more for a questionnaire-based consultation. Some Internet companies issue a prescription through a company physician, others ask patients to submit a prescription with their order. FDA spokesperson Laura Bradbard said that companies selling Viagra over the Internet are usually legal, but not if they sell drugs without a physician prescription. Barada said New York lawmakers are working on a bill to prohibit Internet sales of Viagra, noting that on-line transactions can hide a customer's age or health status."They could be selling the drug to 14 year-olds, or women," he said. |
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