Online drug relief should be extended beyond the virus

The novel coronavirus outbreak has affected the lives of people not just in Wuhan, the epicenter of the disease and capital of Hubei province, but around the country. This is because measures to contain the epidemic from spreading include traffic movement control, quarantine and suspension of medical services in some hospitals. These measures also impact those with diseases other than the novel coronavirus, especially patients with chronic diseases, who have to go to hospital to get a doctor's prescription or medication.

According to the Blue Book of Health Management, as of 2018, there were around 300 million people in China with various chronic diseases who require medication.

Thankfully for them, local authorities and suppliers have opened online drugstores, helping people with chronic diseases get medication without visiting hospitals and exposing themselves to the novel coronavirus.

Domestic e-commerce platform JD has launched a channel enabling people with chronic diseases in Hubei to purchase medicine online without having to step out of their houses. In the week after the platform's launch, more than 14,000 people had registered.

Alibaba, too, has launched an online platform to purchase prescription drugs on Tmall. Users in more than 10 cities, such as Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Hangzhou, have used it to buy prescription drugs－sometimes in just 30 minutes－after an online pharmacist reviewed and approved the prescriptions. Tmall even has "an online hospital" where patients with chronic diseases can consult doctors from 8:30 am to midnight.

Under a new Medicine Management Law that came into effect on Dec 1, some drugs, such as for mental illnesses, are banned from sale online. But most other drugs are available and the online facility is of great help to patients with chronic diseases. Local authorities should actively explore more such online services to better serve the public during this epidemic.