Selling medicine without prescription

It is common here in my town to see people going to the pharmacies to buy drugs without having a prescription issued by a doctor. Some foreigners who visit Tanzania actually stock antibiotics from Tanzania as our pharmacies are very flexible in dispensing. Do we have any law that regulates the dispensation and sale of medicines to patients? Are pharmacy operators allowed to sell medicine and drugs to patients without a prescription issued by doctors?
BN, Arusha

Pharmacy business in Tanzania is highly regulated by principal and subsidiary legislations. Two main laws which regulate the sale and dispensation of medicines in Tanzania are the Pharmacy Act, 2011 and the Pharmacy (Prescription Handling and Control) Regulations, 2020 (GN No.266 of 2020) as amended by the Pharmacy (Prescription and Handling Control (Amendment)) Regulations, 2022 (GN No.102 of 2022). In view of section 41 of the Pharmacy Act and regulation 3 of the Pharmacy (Prescription and Handling Control) Regulations, 2020, only sale and dispensation of the prescription medicine requires a prescription issued by a medical practitioner. Non-prescription medicine does not require a prescription made by a medical or allied health practitioner.

A pharmacy operator or an employee of a pharmacy operator is not allowed to sell by retail or dispense a prescription medicine without a valid prescription issued by a medical or allied health practitioner. Section 3 of the Pharmacy Act defines a prescription medicine as a medicine which can only be dispensed upon a prescription made by a medical or allied health practitioner. Unfortunately, however, there is no statutory list of the prescription medicines which can act as a guide to law enforcement agents, especially the police. This gap in the law might be the reason for sale of medicines without a prescription although for drugs that are known internationally pharmacists do demand a prescription.

Other pharmacy operators might be taking advantage of the absence of the list of prescription medicines to sell the prescription medicines to the public. For a law enforcement agent to be able to prosecute a person for sale or dispensation of prescription medicine without a valid prescription, it must be proven beyond reasonable doubt that the medicine sold or dispensed is a prescription medicine. In the absence of the statutory list of the prescription medicines, the law enforcer can only rely on the technical opinion of an expert from the Pharmacy Council or a medical practitioner to opine to the Court whether the medicine sold or dispensed is a prescription medicine or not.

Moreover, a prescriber of the medicine is required to issue 3 copies of prescription written in English or Swahili language. Two copies of the prescription are intended to be retained by the person selling or dispensing the medicine and one copy is returned to the patient (buyer of the medicine). The law further requires that the envelope or container in which the medicine is dispensed or sold to the patient should contain the name and address of the patient. In controlling the retail business of medicine, the law imposes obligation on the sellers and dispensers of the medicines to keep a prescription book in which they record the name and address of the patients supplied with the medicines, the strength and quantity of the medicines supplied, the name and address of the prescriber, to mention a few.

The sale or dispensation of prescription medicine without a valid prescription issued by a medical or allied health practitioner is an offence under the Pharmacy Act, 2011 and the Pharmacy (Prescription Handling and Control) Regulations, 2020 which attracts a fine not exceeding TZS 1M or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months.

Conditions for worker’s compensation

I am employed as a driver of heavy trucks which transports goods to the neighboring countries from Dar es Salaam port. To celebrate my birthday, I had some beers while I was on my way back to Tanzania. After drinking a few beers, I was involved in an accident which the police claimed was attributed to drinking under the influence of alcohol. As a result of this accident, I have sustained a serious fracture on my left leg. The medical report shows I have suffered a permanent disability and will not be able to drive anymore. I asked my employer to report the accident to the Workers Compensation Fund for the Fund to pay me benefits but the employer has refused on the ground that the accident was caused by my willful act so I don’t qualify to get any benefit from the Fund? Is the employer right?
RY, Dar es Salaam

Section 19(1) of the Workers’ Compensation Act [Cap.263 R.E 2015] sets a general rule that where the accident is attributable to serious or willful misconduct of the employee, he or she is not entitled to benefits offered by the Workers’ Compensation Fund. However, sub-section (2) gives an exception to the general rule that where the accident has caused death or permanent disability of the employee, he or she or the dependent of the employee will be entitled to benefits provided by the Fund. Driving under influence of alcohol is regarded as a serious road traffic offence and it is taken to be a serious professional misconduct for a driver. Nevertheless, the fact that you have suffered a permanent disability in the course of employment gives you right to compensation by the Fund despite the fact that the accident was attributed to driving under the influence of alcohol.

You can still approach the Fund directly yourself for compensation if your employer is unwilling to assist you to claim compensation. Sometimes an employer may be hesitant to report the accident to the Fund because he has not registered the employee with the Workers Compensation Fund or he is not remitting contributions to the Fund as per the law.