[lbo-talk] Gov't-sanctioned website in Minnesota to buy cheaper meds from Canada

[/ dave /]

[The governor of Minnesota has given the go-ahead for Minnesota 
to become the first state to set up a web-based program for MN 
residents to buy prescription drugs from Canada, allowing said 
residents to avoid having to pay the hugely inflated prices 
charged for meds in the U.S. Interesting to note the comments 
made by the rep for the state Pharmacists Association, who 
points out - not incorrectly, afaict (?) - that the success of 
this program could put many (esp. small-town) pharmacists out of 
business. It reminds me of the plight of an associate of mine 
who's owned a great indie record/music store in town for over a 
decade and a half, and is now looking at the possibility of 
going out of business or moving shop and scaling down to a 
fraction of what his business had been. In all the hullabaloo 
about inflated CD prices, downloading, and generally sticking it 
to the Man (i.e. the RIAA and the record companies), many 
independent retailers seem to have ended up getting the short 
end of the stick as listeners have flocked to iTunes and the 
like. Of course there may not have been much of a "long end of 
the stick", as most everything seems to be heading in the 
direction of song-based digital downloads anyway. And it's 
pretty self-evident that lower prescription drug prices for 
everyone would trump the interests of a relatively small number 
of pharmacists (although in a better world, with a 
fully-integrated national health plan, said pharmacists might 
well have an important, albeit tweaked, role). In any case, I 
wonder how long this Canada-importation thing can last. Surely 
the pharma companies will commence undoing it by some blatant, 
nefarious means in short order.  /  dave  / ]

http://www.startribune.com/stories/587/4158007.html

Pawlenty releases plan for lower-priced prescription drugs
Associated Press

Published October 16, 2003

	
Saying the federal government has been ``asleep at the switch'' 
on the issue of prescription drug costs, Republican Gov. Tim 
Pawlenty said he plans to make Minnesota the first state in the 
nation to help any of its residents buy lower-priced medications 
from Canada.

The state plans to create a Web site that lists Canadian 
pharmacies that meet Minnesota's standards for safety. State 
officials also will negotiate prices at which approved 
pharmacies will sell drugs here.

Health and Human Services Commissioner Kevin Goodno said the 
state hopes to have the Web site running within a matter of 
months. Officials said the Web site would try to limit 
purchasing to Minnesota residents.

``We're here because nobody's taken effective action,'' Pawlenty 
said Thursday. ``Collectively the system has been unresponsive 
to an obvious need that has now reached a crisis point.''

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has opposed the 
reimportation of drugs from Canada and other nations, saying 
some drugs don't meet FDA specifications on refrigeration and 
labeling.

Pawlenty, however, said he's confident safety concerns can be 
addressed.

While any Minnesotan could use the site to buy drugs, the state 
plans to offer incentives for state employees to do so. For 
instance, the state might waive co-payments or allow state 
employees to share in the cost savings.

This is a scaled back version of what Pawlenty had suggested 
earlier - having the state reimport drugs from Canada and other 
countries, an idea that faced significant legal hurdles.

Pawlenty said he also has directed state officials to look into 
importing FDA-approved, foreign-made drugs and figure out a way 
to distribute those medications to residents of the state.

He said that step would need the approval of Tommy Thompson, the 
U.S. secretary of Health and Human Services, but Pawlenty said 
he is hopeful Thompson, as former governor of Wisconsin, would 
be sympathetic.

The governor said he's ``cautiously optimistic'' about the 
legality of Thursday's proposals. Attorney General Mike Hatch 
said he has reviewed the plan and believes it is ``a viable 
approach.''

Pawlenty acknowledged that the plan wouldn't solve the problem 
of high drug prices, but called it ``one piece of the puzzle.''

Additionally, the governor said he'll call for change at the 
federal level and plans to convene a summit of other governors 
on prescription drugs by the end of the year.

``You're going to see a groundswell of support and participation 
that will rise to the level that eventually Congress and the 
federal government will have to change,'' he predicted.

Because of government price controls and a favorable exchange 
rate, brand-name drugs in Canada often cost much less than they 
do in the United States.

For example, tamoxifen, a drug used to treat breast cancer, 
costs about $350 per month in the United States. The same drug 
costs about $60 per month in Germany and $50 per month in Canada.

Pawlenty is not the first Minnesota politician to tap into the 
discontent over drug prices.

Rep. Gil Gutknecht, a Republican, is sponsoring legislation that 
would remove the FDA's veto power over importation of 
FDA-approved drugs from FDA-approved facilities in Canada, the 
European Union and seven other nations.

The measure would require imported medicine to be shipped in 
anti-tampering and anti-counterfeiting packaging.

Sen. Mark Dayton, a Democrat, donates his $154,700 senate salary 
to bus seniors to Canada so they can buy cheaper drugs north of 
the border.

Julie K. Johnson, executive vice president of the Minnesota 
Pharmacists Association, said Pawlenty's plan would ``completely 
devastate rural pharmacy in Minnesota.''

She said the plan would put already struggling pharmacists, 
particularly in outstate Minnesota, out of business. ``They are 
on the edge and this will push them over,'' she said.

Johnson also said the plan ignores the pharmacist's expertise in 
ensuring that patients get the correct drugs in the correct 
amounts and in the correct combinations.

``It's in complete disregard of the contributions that 
pharmacists make to the system,'' she said.

The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, 
representing most major drug manufacturers, opposes the idea of 
states importing Canadian drugs. In a statement issued following 
the news conference, the group said the idea undermines federal 
law and could expose states to possible lawsuits if any 
recipients of the drugs are injured by the imports.