Rep. Scott Hochberg, recently re-elected Democrat from District 137 needs to hear your views on this proposed legislation. Please take the time to contact Scott and let him know what you think.
scott@scotthochberg.com
Houston Office: Location: 7011 Harwin at Savoy, between Hillcroft and Fondren Suite 230 Driving Directions: From downtown, take the Southwest Freeway, exit Hillcroft. Stay on the feeder past Hillcroft and make a right on Savoy, just past the Hilton. Take Savoy to Harwin. Mailing Address: State Representative Scott Hochberg 7011 Harwin #230 Houston, Texas 77036 Telephone: 832-252-7336 Fax: 832-252-8015 Administrative Aide: Renita Coleman renita.coleman@house.state.tx.us Austin Office: Location: State Capitol Main Building, 4th Floor, Room 4N.5 Mailing Address: State Representative Scott Hochberg Box 2910 Austin, Texas 78768-2910 Telephone: 512-463-0492 Fax: 512-463-5896 (Faxes must be specifically addressed to Rep. Hochberg, as this fax machine serves all offices. Legislative Aide: Holly McIntush holly.mcintush@house.state.tx.us
Bill would let Texans import medications
State lawmaker says residents should be able to get cheap drugs from CanadaBy R.G. RATCLIFFECopyright 2005 Houston Chronicle AUSTIN - Many Texans for years have sought cheaper prescription drugs by crossing the border into Mexico, an option often considered unsafe and inconvenient except for those living close to the Rio Grande.Now, importing less-expensive prescription drugs could move from Mexico to the mailbox under a bill filed by state Rep. Scott Hochberg, D-Houston. It would let Texas consumers order prescriptions from Canadian pharmacies.Hochberg's bill would allow the state to license pharmacies approved by the Canadian government so they can ship prescription drugs to Texans. A Texas resident would be limited to purchasing no more than a three-month supply of any one drug at one time.Hochberg said he was motivated to file the legislation because many of his constituents are responding to Internet ads for cheap drugs from Canada."Clearly, it's going on. We just don't know the quantity or what the quality is," Hochberg said.He said no one knows whether those are legitimate drugs from Canadian pharmacies, and some people do not know how to shop the Internet to find legitimate drug programs."There are a lot of people who would benefit from this who wouldn't know how to start. You just don't pick up a phone and dial Canada," Hochberg said.The American Medical Association has endorsed importation of prescription drugs to drive down prices.A recent report by Orange County, Calif., said Canadian drugs cost about 40 percent less than in the United States. The report said about a million people in this country are purchasing drugs from Canadian pharmacies.Illinois, Wisconsin, Missouri and Kansas already have set up a system to allow their residents to purchase prescription drugs from foreign suppliers.The I-Save Rx importation plan uses select Canadian and British pharmacies that have agreed to state regulation and inspection.Data from the program shows that consumers can save dramatically by purchasing prescriptions from foreign sources.For instance, a three-month supply of the blood thinner Plavix costs $397 in the United States, but $257 in the United Kingdom and $213 in Canada. The cholesterol-lowering medicine Lipitor costs $214 in the United States for a three-month supply, $158 in the United Kingdom and $162 in Canada.Minnesota modelHochberg said he modeled his bill - House Bill 173 - after a similar state program, Minnesota RxConnect. "In the other states, it didn't take legislation. ... In Minnesota, the governor just ordered them to do it," he said.Hochberg said he does not know if Texas pharmacy law would allow Gov. Rick Perry to establish such a program with an executive order, but he believes it could be done."I'm not sure who would challenge Gov. Perry if he just decided to do it," Hochberg said. "I wish he would."Perry spokeswoman Kathy Walt said the governor is considering the I-Save RX program but is not ready to commit to anything."The governor is looking at this and a number of other options to make health care more affordable," Walt said.California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger last year vetoed three measures that could have increased the flow of drugs from Canadian pharmacies into his state.One bill would have created a California program much like what Hochberg is proposing for Texas. Schwarzenegger said he vetoed the bill because it violated federal law and "exposed the state to civil, criminal and tort liability."Critics said Schwarzenegger vetoed the bill because major pharmacy companies that opposed it had donated more than $300,000 to his campaign.Industry oppositionThe pharmaceutical industry has opposed the importation of prescription drugs from Canada into the United States. In Texas, the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America pays lobbyists more than $300,000 a year to represent their interests at the state Legislature. Individual pharmaceutical companies spend another $950,000 a year on lobbyists in Texas.A spokeswoman for the association, Wanda Moebius, said the industry is concerned about patient safety.Moebius said that in some cases, drugs are shipped from other countries and "sit on a dock in Canada just long enough to be called Canadian." She said pharmacists in Wisconsin found the state selling Canadian generic drugs not approved for sale in the United States.Moebius said that ultimately a nation of 30 million people cannot become the prescription drug supplier for a nation of 300 million people."Because they (Canadians) have price controls, the American consumer has to pick up an unfair share of the research and development costs. In effect, Canada is free-riding off of America," Moebius said.No safety guaranteesAnd neither outgoing Secretary of Health and Human Services Tommy Thompson, a Republican, nor his Democratic predecessor under President Clinton, Donna Shalala, would certify that drugs imported from other countries are safe. Former Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Mark McClellan toured Texas in 2003 warning seniors against buying prescriptions in Mexico. At the time he did not address the issue of imports from Canada but said consumers should be aware that when they cross a border, "all bets are off" for safety.McClellan sent warning letters to three Temple companies, accusing them of facilitating the illegal importation of drugs from Canada by sending prescriptions to Canadian pharmacies that then shipped drugs to people in the United States."The FDA is doing its utmost to make safe, effective and affordable drugs available to those who need them, but we cannot tolerate shady operations that enrich a few while exposing many patients to the risks of dubious imports," McClellan said at the time.'It's going to happen'Tom Curb, president of two of the companies, Expedite-Rx and SPC Global Technologies Inc., said his firms are not reimporters, just prescription benefits managers. Curb said the Internet market for prescriptions now allows people to buy drugs from all over the world."It's going to happen. People have gotten smart. They realize there's a disparity of pricing out there," Curb said.Hochberg said prices in the United States may need to be brought in line either through bulk government purchases or controls at the federal level."The more cities and states that get into this, the more the issue of differential pricing becomes one that needs to get resolved," he said. "Once it becomes a big thing, someone at the national level is going to have to address how pharmaceuticals are priced in this country."

posted by Joshua P. Angell  @ 5.1.05

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