Canadian Drugs going to the US

[August1991]

"The issue is that Canada isn't a drugstore for the U.S.," a source told The Globe and Mail yesterday. "It's been sustainable up to now, but who knows how long that will last?"

G & M Dosanjh Quote

The crazy thing is that these are not Canadian drugs. They are American drugs shipped to Canada for sale in Canada.

The US pharmaceutical companies are practicing (or were practicing) price-discrimination by selling certain branded drugs at a lower price in Canada.

If this keeps up, the pharmaceuticals will simply stop the practice and treat the Canadian market the same as the US market. Our drug prices will rise.

Dosanjh is wrapping himself in the Canadian flag in front of a US audience, he's doing the bidding of the pharmaceuticals and he's helping to keep drug prices in Canada lower. It's a smart move that can't lose. (Note that he even waited until after the US election to make his speech.)

Of course, the rise in the Canadian dollar may help solve the problem.

[Big Blue Machine]

The Americans should get their own drugs. They shouldn't import from us because because we have cheaper drugs. They should look at their system and change it so they have the same price as us. Importing isn't a solution.

[daniel]

The ball's in our court and also in our favour. We are not obliged to resell the drugs back to the US.

1) We can resell them back to our American customers but at a favourable markup so that all could still benefit - high enough to fill the Romanow Gap but still low enough to give our customers a savings. What's so different about this scenario when comparing how Canadian resources get resold back to Canadians? (This would not be favourable in the eyes of the drug companies.)

2) We can keep it all to ourselves and sell any surplus to the world market. (Drug companies may agree to this.)

3) A negotiated agreement in which the US has to concede to the Kyoto Protocol, UN authority in international conflicts (especially Iraq), poverty in Africa, missile shield, and a whole host of other Bush/Cheney initiatives that generally placed the US on planet of their own. (Drug companies might be neutral to this.)

[caesar]

We are already experiencing a shortage of flu vaccine (made in Canada) due to the large number of Americans being forced to come here for their flu shots. Our high risk patients are being put on hold. If this practice of selling drugs to Americans is allowed to run unchecked; we will have more shortages and less time for doctors to attend to our needs. Why work and deal with patients when they can get rich okaying American partients prescriptions without even seeing the patient.

[takeanumber]

They want to vote for Bush and against socialized medicine, but they want socialized drugs.

Screw'em.

Freeze them out.

[Big Blue Machine]

Let them freeze in the dark.

[Slavik44]

Carefull the tax money the government gets from this, helps keep Canadians from freezing in the dark. The best policy would be for the Canadian government to try and regulate how many drugs can be sold, I.E take care of Canadians first and foremost, and allow a surpluss to be sold.Of course we could simply force online companies to raise their prices so high Americans go to Mexico. As far as the flu vaccine is concerned, maybe next year we should start by restricting who can get flu vaccines, High risk Canadians first (give them a few weeks head start), then open it up to general public.