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A New Source for Discount PrescriptionsBy
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS DELRAY BEACH, Fla. — Mary Jane Gregory recently walked out of Discount Drugs of Canada here with a 33 percent savings on her osteoporosis drug that outweighed any doubts she might have had about the new store, which gets her prescription filled in distant Winnipeg. "I don't know whether it's illegal or not, but it's right out here in the open," Ms. Gregory, 71, said. "How bad can it be ?” Shopping for cheaper foreign drugs is not a new idea. Americans have done it discreetly through Web sites and excursions to Canada and Mexico over the past few years, as regulators look the other way at an activity that is technically illegal. But buying and selling has now moved into small storefront operations cropping up across the country. Pharmacies are unhappy, but regulators do not seem ready to crack down
on buyers, many of whom are older and on limited incomes. Drug sales are required by law to be conducted by licensed pharmacies, and importing drugs by mail is illegal. Federal regulations allow travelers to bring in a 90-day personal supply of drugs, but only if the medications are not yet approved for sale in this country. Earle Turow, who opened Discount Drugs two months ago in a busy medical center, says he is not breaking any laws because his store does not import or stock the medications people order. The store takes orders from customers and faxes them to a pharmacy in Canada, which then charges customers' credit cards and ships the drugs to their doors. "We are strictly providing a service that people need," Mr. Turow said. He added that his customers saved 10 percent to 90 percent on prescriptions. The drug Ms. Gregory takes for osteoporosis, for example, costs her $130 for a three-month supply from Canada. At a local pharmacy, the same money gets her only two months' worth. Similar ventures in Atlanta, in Scottsdale, Ariz., and at the Mall of America near Minneapolis, among other places, are attracting thousands of Americans who take prescription medicine regularly and have little or no insurance coverage for the drugs. In Florida, there are operations in Fort Myers, Orlando and Naples. John D. Taylor, executive director of the Florida Board of Pharmacy, declined to say whether the board was investigating Mr. Turow's company or others like it. The Food and Drug Administration, which oversees the pharmaceutical industry, said it focused enforcement on large commercial drug shipments and not mail-order imports by individuals. The agency acknowledges that the foreign prescription business is booming and estimates that at least two million personal shipments of drugs will cross the nation's borders this year, twice as many as last year. That is just fine with customers of the storefront operations. "I don't see what's illegal about getting something for cheaper somewhere else," said Mabelle London, another customer at Mr. Turow's shop. Ms. London, 87, of Boca Raton, takes Plavix, a medication that helps prevent strokes. She pays $184 for 90 pills to get them through Discount Drugs. Her local pharmacist charges $357. The Food and Drug Administration warns that imported drugs could be contaminated with impure or unknown ingredients, and notes that the pharmacies that dispense them are not under the supervision of the United States government. "What we are afraid of is when consumers are going outside the United States, they might be getting these risky drugs and suffer some serious and severe side effects," said Tom McGinnis, pharmacy affairs director for the agency. But many of these drugs are the same ones manufactured for sale in the
United States. They are cheaper in Canada because of government caps on
drug prices and because the American dollar has more buying power in
Canada. Mr. Turow, a 72-year-old retired clothing manufacturer, said at least 300 people were placing orders each day at his store.
Copyright
© 2002 Global Action on Aging
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