One of the greatest challenges facing American consumers is the high cost of prescription drugs. Soaring prescription drug costs have placed a tremendous strain on family budgets. They have also imposed a heavy burden on employers – both public and private – who are struggling to provide affordable health insurance coverage to their workers. It is therefore no wonder that American consumers everywhere are looking across the border and into their computer screens in search of more affordable prescription drugs.
It is well-documented that the average price of prescription drugs is much lower in Canada and Western Europe than in the United States, with the price of some drugs in my home state of Maine being twice that of the same drugs that are available only a few miles away in a Canadian drug store.
It simply does not seem fair that American consumers are footing the bill for the remarkable, yet costly, advancements in pharmaceutical research and development, while our neighbors just across the border receive those same medications at substantially lower prices. That is why I have long supported legislation to allow American consumers to benefit from international price competition on prescription drugs by permitting FDA-approved medicines made in FDA-approved facilities to be re-imported into this county. But I am also concerned that we make certain that this is done safely and responsibly. I am pleased that this morning's hearing will also focus on a slightly different but closely related issue – the safety challenges posed by the sale of prescription drugs over the Internet.
The growth of the Internet in recent years has created many new opportunities for consumers to shop on-line for health-related products, information and services. The Internet offers many advantages for on-line shoppers – convenience, competitive prices, privacy, and easy access to health and medical information. Morever, through the Internet, individuals with disabilities, the elderly, and patients living in remote areas can easily obtain information, products and services that they previously acquired only with great difficulty. As a consequence, the sale of consumer products over the Internet has grown rapidly, including the sale of prescription drugs.
The number of on-line pharmacies has increased dramatically from the 190 identified by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) in October of 2000 to an estimated 1,400 sites in April of 2004. While online drug sales by reputable pharmacies can have many advantages for patients, they also present new and unique challenges for regulators, law enforcement and policymakers. And rogue online pharmacies can be a prescription for disaster for unwary consumers.
Last June, I participated in a hearing held by the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations (PSI) which revealed disturbing evidence about the ease with which U.S. consumers can purchase dangerous and often addictive controlled substances from Internet pharmacy websites. I was particularly alarmed to learn that more than 90 percent of on-line sites do not require a prescription or validate that there is a legitimate patient-physician relationship.
I believe that we need legislation to protect consumers from these rogue internet pharmacies. This is one of the primary reasons that I have joined Chairman Smith in cosponsoring Senator Gregg's Safe IMPORT Act, which establishes federal licensing requirements and penalties for all Internet pharmacies that conduct or solicit business in the United States. The legislation also requires verification of a legitimate patient-prescriber relationship, and establishes verification procedures for all prescriptions.
MR. CHAIRMAN, while I believe that we must do all that we can to make prescription drugs more affordable, we must also do all that we can to ensure patient safety. This hearing is an important part of that process, and I commend the Chairman for raising these important issues.
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