MHLW Introduces Tougher Sales Requirements For OTC Drugs

TOKYO - Japan's Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare enacted re-amended regulations of the Pharmaceutical Administration Law, effective June 1, which in principle require over-the-counter pharmaceutical sales in face-to-face transactions between pharmacists and registered salespersons and consumers but set a two-year grace period for distribution via the Internet and mail order and to remote, sparsely populated areas