Prescription Drug and Medicare Improvement Act of 2003 - Resumed
PRESCRIPTION DRUG AND MEDICARE IMPROVEMENT ACT OF 2003RESUMED
AMENDMENT NO. 946, AS AMENDED
Mr. GRASSLEY. Mr. President, the Dorgan amendment has been amended to further enhance the safety precautions included in the bill. The amendment now gives the Secretary of Health and Human Services the authority to certify that reimportation would be both safe and would save the hard-earned money of U.S. consumers. The HHS Secretary would also have the authority to terminate the program if for some reason it is not working.
The fact is, pharmaceutical manufacturers here in the United States are reimporting these very same drugs that seniors are forced across the border to obtain. But if it's safe enough for the manufacturers to do, then it should be safe enough for local pharmacies as well.
After all, these drugs are manufactured in factories that meet FDA standards. And it shouldn't matter whether these drugs come from New Jersey, Alberta, or Atlanta. In fact, a Congressional Research Service study found United States and Canadian drug development, manufacturing, and distribution systems have the same high level of integrity.
If this amendment is accepted and the bill is enacted, Americans will no longer have to drive through an international checkpoint to check out their prescription drugs. Instead, they will have the potential to save an estimated $38 billion out of the $100 billion Americans spend every year on their prescription drugs.
Consider the savings: A month's supply of Coumadin, a blood-thinning drug, costs $40 here in the United States and just $7 in Canada.
The emphysema drugs, upon which some seniors rely to breathe, can cost $1,700 for a 6-month supply in the United States and just $800 in Canada.
Again, let me say that, while the Dorgan amendment provides a step we can take right now to help seniors afford their medication, it is only a stop-gapnot a solution. For the long-term, there is no substitute for passing a comprehensive Medicare prescription drug benefit. We need to accomplish this goal so that every senior in America has access to affordable prescription drugs.
With that, I want to again thank the Senator from North Dakota, Mr. DORGAN, for his leadership on this issue, and call on the Senate to accept this amendment and move forward to pass S. 1 to create a comprehensive Medicare prescription drug benefit without delay.