Bill Waggaman, with the state's Office of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs says it's hard to know just how many people are using illicit internet pharmacies, but evidence shows abuse of legal drugs is surpassing some of the more familiar illegal drugs in popularity.

He says while the so-called pharmacies dispense drugs on the basis of answers from health questionnaires, the new law cracks down on the bogus operations by going to the core of health care.

Waggaman: "The foundation of this piece of legislation is that it requires a legitimate doctor patient relationship at every single stage."

State Representative Bethany Hall-Long, a Middletown Democrat sponsored the bill, which she says has no effect on people using legitimate services rather than going to the drug store.

Hall-Long: "This is not the mail order program, this is not the valid prescription that you have written from your physician or nurse practitioner, but again those are that illegal or rogue."

Operators of the on-line pharmacies could face up to 8 years behind bars and fines of up to $25,000, with those penalties jumping to 25 years and $100,000 if a bogus prescription seriously injures or kills someone.