NABP’s Healthcare Merchant Accreditation Program Serves Wide Range of Businesses, Provides Patients Fraud-Proof Credential

MOUNT PROSPECT, IL – The National Association of Boards of Pharmacy^® (NABP^®) is pleased to announce the launch of its newly rebranded Healthcare Merchant Accreditation program. Launched in 2014 as the .Pharmacy Top-Level Domain Program, its purpose was, and continues to be, the implementation of a system for online safety and oversight that allows patients across the globe to easily identify safe, legitimate sources for purchasing medication online, accessing virtual health care, and receiving accurate medical information. Both then and now, the “.pharmacy” domain is a key component of the program, serving as a fraud-proof indicator of a website’s legitimacy for patients.

“These changes will better align the program with market demand while continuing to meet the Association’s mission to protect public health,” remarked NABP President Reginald B. “Reggie” Dilliard, DPh. “With over two decades of experience vetting online pharmacies, NABP’s expertise has been recognized by many industries, including the payments and digital advertising sectors, as the Association helps vet advertisers and merchants selling pharmacy and pharmacy-related products online. As the customers for this program continue to grow beyond traditional pharmacies, a more inclusive program name became necessary.”

The NABP Healthcare Merchant Accreditation serves a wide range of businesses in the international pharmacy and health care industries. The annual accreditation is awarded to merchants that are properly licensed and follow applicable laws and best practices in the jurisdictions where they do business. An active .pharmacy domain is still a requirement for accreditation; however, the procedure has been streamlined to separate the domain name request process from the accreditation application process. Now, once a business successfully completes its Healthcare Merchant Accreditation review, they will submit a request to the .Pharmacy Registry to permit the purchase of its desired .pharmacy domain name.

Merchants that earn accreditation under the newly named program will meet the same requirements and standards, regardless of revisions to the program name. Organizations that were verified prior to the rebranding will be transitioned seamlessly into the new program. Additionally, accredited merchants can leverage their status to meet requirements set by online advertising platforms and card brand networks, ultimately exhibiting their safety and trustworthiness to patients, businesses, and other third-party organizations that rely on NABP’s review.

To learn more about the Healthcare Merchant Accreditation application process, visit nabp.pharmacy/healthcare-merchant. To request a .pharmacy domain name from the .Pharmacy Registry, visit nabp.pharmacy/domain-registry.