Payment Gateways can Allow Online Pharmacies to Use Their Platform but Also Ensure Compliance

The pharmacy industry is considered as high risk by payment gateways for a number of reasons, foremost being the fact that a large number of pharmacies began selling prescription drugs online without the necessary authorization. As a result a payment gateway for pharmacy has become quite difficult to find since most payment gateways are reluctant to deal with pharmacies. Irrespective of whether a pharmacy sells prescription drugs without authorization or not it will be difficult for it to find a payment gateway for its online transactions.

Why online pharmacies are considered high risk

Many other issues like lack of temperature control during shipping or failure of the shipper to deliver the consignment on time also are serious issues of non-compliance. Since patients are not present during the purchase of drugs on-line there may be may raise serious concern with the online purchase and delivery of drugs. Then of course, there is the issue of fraudsters posing as pharmacy merchants and violating all norms by selling prescription drugs without authorization. All these reasons and more have resulted in online pharmacy segment being regarded as a high risk business. 

Payment gateways must ensure strong compliance of terms and conditions

Not all payment gateways however shy away from online pharmacies as they have very strong compliance norms. A payment gateway for pharmacy business must ensure that the customer’s interest is safe and secure from fraudulent elements posing as pharmacists. The sale of medicines is related to people’s health and hence proper care should be taken to ensure that customers come under no harm. Many customers are still not very alert about the products they buy and the regulations that bind these products. They are happy to rely on the online merchant for products of good quality and end up getting duped.

Fraudulent merchants don’t have better technology than gateways

A fraudulent merchant doesn’t use better technology than the payment gateway to cheat the customer; he merely takes advantage of the loose compliance norms of the payment gateway and the customer’s ignorance to carry out his illegal act. Therefore, a payment gateway must strictly enforce its terms and conditions on the merchants using its platform.