The cost of prescription drugs and related concerns have become issues in politics, and there is a growing interest in learning more about exactly how many American use the Internet to find out about prescription drugs, and additionally, how many Americans may be purchasing prescription drugs over the Internet. The Pew Internet & American Life Project has recently released a 17-page report (authored by Susannah Fox) that highlights the results of a 2200-person telephone survey that took place from May to June 2004 on just this subject. Some of the findings include the observation that close to 64 percent of American households contain a regular user of prescription drugs, and that approximately 26 percent of these households have used the Internet to look for information about prescription drugs. Perhaps the most interesting finding from the report is that 62 percent of Americans think purchasing prescription drugs online is less safe than purchasing them at a local pharmacy.
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