FDA Takes Steps to Shut Down Company Importing Drugs From Canada

[denverbill]

http://ap.tbo.com/ap/breaking/MGABOMHDRPD.html

WASHINGTON (AP) - The federal government moved Thursday to shut down another company that imports cheaper Canadian drugs to the United States.
The Food and Drug Administration gave Expedite-Rx of Temple, Texas, 15 days to quit or face legal action. The warning letter marks the third time the FDA has moved to shut down suppliers who defy its ban on the importation of foreign drugs.

Expedite-Rx supplies drugs to some employees and retirees of Montgomery, Ala., one of two U.S. cities so far that are importing medicines from Canada in hopes of saving money. The FDA said Expedite-Rx's supplies could put those people at risk.

Documents from Montgomery's program and Expedite-Rx's Web site "clearly showed they were in violation of federal law," said FDA pharmacy affairs director Tom McGinnis. "The agency's going to move aggressively against anybody breaking federal law and putting public health at risk."

<snip>

Let us all pity the drug companies. The poor, poor, drug companies.

[Hobarticus]

1. Here in Iowa...

Gov. Vilsack just proposed making it easier for Iowans to buy direct from Canada.

If the Feds are gonna climb into bed with the drug companies, it doesn't mean the states have to watch.

Hey, fight the power, any way you can.

[lastknowngood]

2. Yep those Canadian drugs are dangerous

The Canadians are dieing everyday by the thousands dontcaknow

[kskiska]

3. When does the barbed wire go up

to keep Americans in?

[bobthedrummer]

4. Here in Wisconsin, Gov. Doyle wants to set-up a website for ordering

Canadian prescription drugs to give US a break, plus we had it for awhile recently.

[Gman]

5. I've no doubt at one time Mr. McGinnis was a lobbyist

for the pharmaceutical industry. No doubt whatsoever.

[bobthedrummer]

6. Actually it's the chemical giant from the Third Reich

I.G. Farben et al, it is now a worldwide pharm-chem industry that also produces poisons as well as antidotes-the same Board...
http://www.redflagsweekly.com/storm_warnings/poison.html

[KAZ]

7. They come after you with a knife...

Make no mistake, our FDA is more concerned about their political donors than they are of the lives of their less affluent constituents.

[baby_bear]

8. Why are price controls so anathema here?

You get the Democrat candidates talking about the issue, and they talk about allowing imports from Canada and negotiating lower Medicare drug costs with the companies, but no one ever even utters the term "price control." Hey guys, why do you think the drugs are lower cost in the other countries? Price controls!

I'm sorry, but the fact that none of them will even discuss the issue disturbs me. Like they all think they will become castrated if they utter those syllables.

The people of the U.S., i.e., taxpayers, grant huge amounts of money in tax relief for R&D and other subsidies to the pharmaceutical industry, and a lot of the original research occurs in publicly-funded universities. So we are already paying a big hunk of the cost for research and development. Why do we have to pay exorbitant costs on top of that, when people in other countries do not?

Here's an example: a month's worth of oral contraceptives costs about $24-$30. My doctor told me he learned at a convention that the pills cost about half a cent apiece to make and market.

In other countries, people don't pay $24- $30 a month for birth control pills. But we do.

Why don't the Dems talk about this more specifically?

s_m

[KAZ]

9. A small reply.

"grant huge amounts of money in tax relief for R&D and other subsidies to the pharmaceutical industry"
About 50% was the last figure I saw, and most of what the pharmies are paying for is marketing("side eeffects include, neeedless spending if your in the US, etc.).