U.S. quietly gives drug importing from Canada OK

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

With congressional Republicans getting hammered on the campaign trail over whether Americans should be allowed to import prescription drugs from Canada, the government has quietly ended seizures of imported medications.

Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., on Tuesday released a Department of Homeland Security statement saying that U.S. Customs and Border Patrol officials were dropping a November 2005 policy of seizing mail orders of U.S.-manufactured pharmaceuticals from Canada, where they are sold more cheaply.

[...]

"Effective Oct. 9, Customs and Border Protection officers will no longer process non-controlled drugs under the November 2005 guidelines and, instead, will refer these interdictions to the Food and Drug Administration for eligibility determinations," the statement read.

This language, according to Department of Homeland Security spokeswoman Lynn Hollinger, means the agency is returning to its previous policy, under which there were essentially no seizures.

"This is a huge victory," Nelson said in a statement his office issued.

http://www.palmbeachpost.com/nation/conten...anadadrugs.html

[Saddle Bronc 124]

The policy of siezing these was rather idiotic anyway--as it was easy to bypass by just asking an acquaintance to buy many of the medications (sold OTC in Canada), or an acquaintance in Canada to mail them (not the same as mail-order).

[Mirorgate 0]

Damn Gupt... for a minute there I thought I had a new import cash crop to think about... but you actually talking medicine not recreation

[almaty 19]

Damn Gupt... for a minute there I thought I had a new import cash crop to think about... but you actually talking medicine not recreation

me too..i was off to the great white north to get some ...#######! you mean like claratin...? damn, back to tijuana

[Reba 2]

My in-laws once commented to me about the "dangerous drugs" being imported from Canada to poor seniors in the US. They actually believed Bush's rantings about how dangerous all of it was, because it hadn't been approved or inspected by the FDA.

Of course, most of the stuff sold in Canada is made by the same pharma companies as here in the US, and go back and forth all the time. Same product either side of the border

[Saddle Bronc 124]

Of course, most of the stuff sold in Canada is made by the same pharma companies as here in the US, and go back and forth all the time. Same product either side of the border

But oft, different price as OTC (lower) in Canada vs prescription (higher price by pharma recovered either from consumer or HMO/PPO). :P