|
|
| |
|
John Kerry is a supporter for re-importation of prescription medication for American citizens.
During the third Presidential debate, Senator Kerry said the following:
"The reason health-care costs are getting higher, one of the principal reasons, is that this (Bush) administration has stood in the way of common-sense efforts that would have reduced the costs. Let me give you a prime example...the president blocked you from the right to have less expensive drugs from Canada."
The Canadian Press - October 14, 2004
Edwards central message was that if elected, he and Kerry would attempt to reduce the high cost of prescription drugs by encouraging the reimportation from Canada of lower-priced U.S. made prescription drugs. He also criticized President Bush for not allowing prescription drug imports from Canada and for relaxed enforcement against misleading ads. (Star Tribune - August 15, 2004)
"We will end the disgrace of seniors being forced to choose between meals and medication. Our seniors are paying too much for prescription drugs, while options abroad are far cheaper and just as safe. We will allow the safe reimportation of drugs from other countries." (Globe and Mail - July 28, 2004)
Kerry, who has been voicing support for imports since March, has called on Bush to help states with pilot projects that would screen Canadian pharmacies, approve them and then recommend them to consumers. He'd also change a Medicare bill provision that prohibits the government from negotiating lower drug prices on behalf of beneficiaries, calling it an excessive profit grab for big drug companies. (Canadian Press - July 24, 2004)
|
- John Kerry’s running mate (John Edwards) says Americans should be able to buy prescription drugs in Canada, and that the new Medicare drug benefit should be re-worked to help seniors, not hurt them. (Associated Press – July 16, 2004)
- With polls indicating that more than 60 percent of Americans want to open the borders and many are dissatisfied with Medicare’s new drug benefit, pro-importation legislation picked up the support of former opponents such as the AARP and Sens. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.) and Trent Lott (R-Miss.). Democratic presidential candidate Sen. John F. Kerry (D-Mass.) has pledged he would sign an importation law. (The Washington Post – July 15, 2004)
- Kenneth E. Thorpe, an Emory University professor of health policy who has evaluated both Bush and Kerry’s health plans, estimates that Kerry’s would reduce the number of uninsured by nearly 27 million; Bush’s would cut it by 2.4 million. (The Hartford Courant – July 20, 2004)
- A national survey suggests that there are “maybe a half-million seniors” who might swing their votes to Democratic candidate John F. Kerry and another “1 million to 2 million whose votes might be up for grabs on the issue”. ( L.A. Times – August 11, 2004)
- Democratic Presidential candidate John Kerry’s plan to make health care a right and “not a privilege” would give the U.S. government the leverage to force drug companies to cut some prices in half. (Bloomberg News – August 2, 2004)
- Senator John Kerry’s campaign is launching an effort to identify, organize and mobilize seniors across the country while Kerry was pressuring President Bush to allow Americans to purchase cheaper prescription drugs from Canada. ( USA Today – August 11, 2004)
- Kerry, the Democratic Senator and presumptive nominee, supports legalizing imports of cheaper prescription drugs from Canada and other developed nations, a key issue for senior citizens. He also backs giving Medicare authority to negotiate steep discounts from drug companies. (Reuters – July 13, 2004)
|
|
|
|
Bill to allow pharmacies to reimport drugs passes Senate
The Oklahoma Senate backs a drug reimportation plan that would permit state
pharmacies to obtain U-S-made prescription drugs from Canada and elsewhere for
sale here.The Federal Drug Administration has opposed drug reimportation bills,
claiming they violate the Interstate Commerce Clause of the U-S Constitution.
Those measures mainly deal with allowing individuals to obtain reimported
drugs. Tulsa state Senator Tom Adelson says his legislation avoids that legal
question because it would require pharmacies to sell reimported medicines only
to Oklahomans in intrastate, not interstate, commerce. Most programs are geared
to allowing individuals obtain such drugs by crossing the border into Canada or
buying drugs online.
March 08, 2006
Democrats allege bad deal on drugs
Bay Area seniors are not saving significant money under Medicare's new
prescription drug program, according to a report released Monday by most of the
Bay Area's House Democrats. The report says Bay Area prices for 2004's 10
best-selling prescription drugs among seniors are 75 percent higher under the
new Medicare Part D prescription drug benefit than under deals negotiated by
the federal government at other agencies such as the Department of Veterans
Affairs. Medicare Part D's prices also are 60 percent higher than those paid by
consumers in Canada; almost 5 percent higher than prices on Drugstore.com; and
almost 2 percent higher than prices at Costco, the report found. But
Republicans who shepherded the bill through Congress rejected a proposal to let
Medicare negotiate with drug companies for lower prices. The report proves
"what we've been saying since the debate on the Republican Medicare drug bill
began," said Rep. Pete Stark, D-Fremont, in a news release. "If you create a
privatized drug benefit and refuse to let the government negotiate lower
prices, senior citizens and people with disabilities will pay the price," said
Stark, who as ranking Democrat on the House Ways and Means Committee's Health
Subcommittee is particularly outspoken on the issue. "Instead of attempting to
set Medicare on the road to privatization, Republicans in Congress should have
worked with Democrats to establish a real prescription benefit within
Medicare."
March 08, 2006
 |
