Huge savings on popular prescriptions in Canada

Associated Press

WASHINGTON — Whether Americans opt for Nexium or Prevacid to treat their heartburn, they could have bought the drugs in Canada for less than half the price.

As Congress debates whether to allow foreign pharmacies to fill prescriptions, The Associated Press surveyed comparable U.S. and Canadian prices for 10 popular drugs and found the Canadian prices were 33 percent to 80 percent cheaper.

For example, a three-month supply of cholesterol-controlling Lipitor, the world's best-selling prescription drug, was 37 percent cheaper in Canada. The antidepressant Paxil cost about half as much as in the United States, while the arthritis drug Vioxx cost 58 percent less. The biggest price difference was for the anti-psychotic drug Risperdal, 80 percent cheaper in Canada.

The figures are from a check of drug prices on Internet sites maintained by American and Canadian pharmacies.

"You're talking about a $40 billion savings, just in what the government dispenses," said Rep. Jo Ann Emerson, R-Mo., who withheld her support from the House version of a Medicare prescription drug bill until she received assurances from Republican leaders that they would address importation in the final legislation.

Whether to allow Americans to import drugs from Canada and other countries where governments have imposed price controls is among the outstanding issues as lawmakers race to come up with a bill before the end of the year to create a prescription drug benefit for seniors.

Bringing prescription drugs into this country from abroad is now illegal. But the federal government has not tried to block individuals from traveling to Canada to fill their prescriptions.

With Americans facing skyrocketing pharmacy bills, buying drugs in Canada has become a hot political issue, no longer confined to border states where busloads of Americans could make a quick trip north to pick up their prescriptions.

The idea of buying in Canada is favored by a majority of members in the House of Representatives and several Democratic and Republican governors.

Despite the popular support for allowing imports, the congressional measure is being resisted by politically powerful drug manufacturers as well as the Bush administration and influential lawmakers in both parties, mainly citing safety grounds.

The Food and Drug Administration has said it is especially concerned about the safety of Internet drug sales.

The agency said Wednesday that cities and states that allow their employees to import prescription drugs from Canada could face legal action.

"We're not giving them a pass," said William Hubbard, the agency's associate commissioner for policy. "We haven't threatened them (with lawsuits), but we haven't let them off the hook."

Sen. John Breaux, D-La., one of the congressional negotiators, said Canada itself is not the problem so much as other countries where the drugs are produced.

"It is not an answer to this problem to say go buy drugs from Canada which may be coming from Pakistan and India and China and all those countries we have health concerns about," Breaux said.

Federal law allows for importation, but only after the secretary of Health and Human Services has certified that public health would not be endangered.

That certification has never been made, and HHS Secretary Tommy Thompson said last week that the safety issue has not been addressed to his satisfaction in the negotiations.

The issue does not fall along traditional party lines. A coalition of conservative Republicans and liberal Democrats helped pass a bill in the House this year that would allow for imports without Thompson's certification. In the Senate, on the other hand, such ideological opposites as Rick Santorum, R-Pa., and Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass., have warned against removing the public health provision.

Congressional supporters of allowing imports say the safety concerns can be addressed.

"The safety certification is an endless cycle," said Sen. Olympia Snowe, R-Maine.

"I don't see any problem in meeting a safety standard on importing from Canada."

One indication of where congressional negotiators are headed might be that just three of the 12 lawmakers taking part in the closed-door negotiations have voted to allow prescription drug imports.

A federal judge, meanwhile, granted the government's request Thursday to shut down a company, operating as Rx Depot and Rx of Canada, that helps customers buy cheaper prescription drugs from Canada.

The decision by U.S. District Judge Claire Eagan is a blow to customers who use the company to purchase less expensive medicines. It also could affect cities and states nationwide that are considering allowing employees to import drugs in order to cut rising prescription costs.

An estimated 1 million to 2 million Americans buy Canadian drugs through the Internet, storefront operations or by crossing the border.

Comparing prices for 10 most popular drugs

The Associated Press checked the prices of 10 of the most popular prescription drugs on Web sites maintained by U.S. and Canadian companies.

CanadaRx, a Toronto-based company, mails prescription drugs to U.S. residents. The American Web sites belong to CVS Corp. and Walgreen Co.

• Fosamax, for osteoporosis, cost $46 for 30 10-milligram tablets at CanadaRx, and $69 at Walgreens.com.
• Lipitor, used for reducing cholesterol, cost $132 for 90 10-milligram tablets at Canada-Rx; $208 at CVS.com.
• Neurontin, an anti-seizure medication, was $36.68 for 100 100-milligram capsules at CanadaRx; $58 at Walgreens.com.
• Nexium, used for heartburn and ulcers, cost $51.37 for 28 20-milligram capsules at CanadaRx; $120 for 30 capsules at Walgreens.com.
• Paxil, an anti-depressant, cost $40.80 for 30 10-milligram tablets at CanadaRx; $81 at Walgreens.com.
• Prevacid, for heartburn, cost $53.18 for 30 15-milligram capsules at CanadaRx; $126 at Walgreens.com.
• Risperdal, an anti-psychotic, cost $39.16 for 60 half-milligram tablets at CanadaRx; $199 at CVS.com.
• Vioxx, an arthritis drug, cost $36.17 for 30 12.5-milligram tablets at CanadaRx; $86 at Walgreens.com.
• Zocor, a cholesterol-lowering drug, cost $46.65 for 30 10-milligram tablets at CanadaRx; $66 at Walgreens.com.
• Zyprexa, an anti-psychotic, cost $176.91 for 60 5-milligram tablets at CanadaRx; $380 at CVS.com.