Online doctor consultation in India: is an e-prescription valid at a pharmacy?

Your mother needs her BP medicine refilled, the clinic is across town, and the old prescription has expired. Can a doctor on a phone call write a new one that the pharmacy will accept? In India, yes, within clear rules.

What the rules say

In March 2020, India published the Telemedicine Practice Guidelines. They allow registered medical practitioners to consult patients by video, audio or text, and to issue prescriptions digitally. The doctor uses professional judgement about whether a remote consultation is enough, or whether you need to be seen in person.

What makes an e-prescription valid

• The doctor’s name, qualification and medical registration number.
• Your name, age and the date.
• The medicines with strength, dose and duration, and a signature (digital or scanned).

What cannot be prescribed online

The guidelines group medicines into lists. Common over-the-counter medicines and many routine prescription medicines can be prescribed in a teleconsultation. Medicines on the prohibited list, which includes narcotic and psychotropic medicines and Schedule X drugs, cannot.

Consulting a doctor on MedMate

When MedMate launches in Bengaluru, you will be able to book a consultation with a registered doctor. The doctor decides independently whether a prescription is right for you, and the pharmacist checks any prescription before a medicine is dispensed. Read more about the consultation.

This article is general information, not medical advice. If you are worried about your health or someone else’s, speak to a doctor.