Adding election-year momentum to an issue that is popular among seniors, President Bush's chief healthcare official, Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson, said he would recommend that Bush not stand in the way of a bill to make importing prescription drugs legal.

"I think it's coming," Thompson said at a news conference about new Medicare discount cards. "I think Congress is going to pass it."

The House approved an importation bill last year, but it died in the Senate. This year, a bipartisan group of senators, including Democrat Edward M. Kennedy of Massachusetts and Republicans Trent Lott of Mississippi and John McCain of Arizona, is rounding up support that appears to be growing, placing more pressure on the White House.

Thompson's remarks yesterday were the first indication that the pressure is beginning to erode opposition within the administration. Until now, the Food and Drug Administration, which is part of the Department of Health and Human Services, has vigorously fought widespread importation of drugs, deeming it illegal. It has echoed the pharmaceutical industry's argument that allowing importation would undermine US prices and take money away from the research and development of drugs. It has also said that importation could compromise the safety of US consumers by allowing a channel for counterfeit drugs.

Despite the law, importing drugs from Canada and other countries with government price controls is hugely popular with seniors. The AARP, the largest lobbying group for the elderly, has been running television commercials in favor of importation.

Furthermore, prices for US discount cards that were supposed to provide the first savings from the new Medicare prescription benefit law proved to be a disappointment when they were unveiled this week. A website that tracks Canadian and US prices, PharmacyChecker.com, said yesterday that comparisons on five drugs showed Canadian drugs were still 44 to 78 percent cheaper than medicine available through the discount cards.

The comparisons confirmed assertions by the Canadian pharmacy industry that prices remain lower north of the border. Canadians said the continuing price disparities removed one of the last arguments against Canadian importation -- that Washington had taken care of American seniors with the Medicare bill.

"There is so much momentum to support reimportation. The wave of support is definitely there," Andy Troszok, the president of the Canadian International Pharmacy Association, said in a telephone interview last night in response to Thompson's remarks. Troszok said he visited Washington last week to lobby Congress on the issue.

Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino, who received bids from seven Canadian pharmacies yesterday to supply city workers with imported drugs, applauded Thompson's remarks. Boston's pilot importation program is set to begin in July, just weeks before the national spotlight turns on the city as it hosts the Democratic National Convention.

"Tommy Thompson's statement today is long overdue," said the Democratic mayor, who traveled to Washington last year to press the case for importation. "This is really finally penetrating the inner circle of Washington."

"It's time to give the consumer some relief," he said in an interview. "It's not going to make the pharmaceutical companies bankrupt. They have record earnings."

With Thompson's remarks yesterday, the industry appeared to be losing a key ally. The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, the industry's Washington-based trade group, remained steadfast in its opposition to foreign drugs.

"Two secretaries of Health, including Secretary Thompson, have said importation cannot be done without compromising patient safety and public health," said PhRMA spokeswoman Wanda Moebius. "That's the current law of the land and we believe the right way to go to protect patients from tainted, counterfeit, and unapproved drugs that can sneak into the country."

While the FDA has said the practice of importing drugs is illegal, it has looked the other way for seniors and other Americans without insurance who have been purchasing personal supplies from Canada.

Importation began to catch fire last summer, when Michael Albano, then mayor of Springfield, signed up with a Canadian pharmacy to supply city workers and retirees. Republican governors are among those who have joined the fray since then, including New Hampshire Governor Craig Benson and Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty, who have set up websites with links to Canadian pharmacies. A bill is pending in the Massachusetts Legislature to set up a website for Bay State residents. These events have helped spur debate in Washington.

"I'm not surprised at all. It's the number one issue facing the American consumer today," said Albano. "The pharmaceutical companies have enjoyed a very good run for the last 20 years. Now it's time to settle up." Albano, who left office in January and has begun his own consulting business, launched a link on his own website yesterday to a Montreal pharmacy called Mutual Rx.