Bush and Kerry Invited to Join Rx Express to Canada

[Nambe]

U.S. Newswire

.. "You will never have a problem affording the prescription drugs you need to stay healthy. However, 1 out of 4 seniors must choose between buying their medications and paying for other staples like food and rent... You have both pledged to make health care -- and specifically access to lower cost medications -- a top priority if you are elected president in November. We invite both of you to join us on board the Rx Express to hear from seniors and other patients about how prescription drug bulk purchasing can lower drug costs for all Americans."

For the week prior to the Republican National Convention -- August 23rd to August 26th -- the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights (FTCR) will charter a train to take seniors, insured and uninsured patients, and small business owners from San Diego, California to Vancouver, Canada. The Rx Express will stop in dozens of towns in California, Oregon and Washington and pick up patients along the way.

In the letter sent today, FTCR cited heavy lobbying by pharmaceutical companies opposing prescription drug reform as one reason that Bush and Kerry should ride the Rx Express:

"We know you have heard from the pharmaceutical companies because they employ more lobbyists than there are members of Congress. In case that was not enough to get your attention, drug manufacturers have spent millions of dollars sponsoring both parties' conventions in hopes to quell new initiatives that might mean a hit to their profits -- profits that are four to five times greater than the Fortune 500 average. The Rx Express will provide an equal opportunity for you to hear from real people about how skyrocketing prescription drug prices are bankrupting the health care system." ..

[Ducks In A Row]

1. Sadly Kerry won't risk it

maybe he'll send Edwards, or one of the wives.

Hey they could send a Edwards daughter and a Kerry daughter.

[denverbill]

2. That would be a HUGE HUGE mistake. Kerry should go.

This would be an enormous boost for Kerry with seniors, IMO.

[LauraK]

3. Kerry is on the West Coast at just the right time.

He could at least take a ride on the train. Much better than an aircraft carrier for a photo op!

[Hoping4Change]

4. Canada cannot continue to supply the US with cheap drugs.

The supply of cheap drugs in Canada is limited. A deal to to supply drugs to one of the large US states I think it was California was not permitted to be signed because drug companies will not increase the supply of drug to Canada and Canadian pharmacies are experiencing shortages. In fact drug companies are refusing to ship certain new drugs into Canada.


Kerry needs to wrestle with drug manufacture res head on and demand either price controls or at least the ability for the govt to negotiate prices.

[Sub Atomic]

6. The thing that is so ludicrous about this

is that the drug manufacturers have been sucking on the government welfare teat for decades.

We, the taxpayers, fund their research & development, then the drug manufacturers screw us every which way to Sunday in order to reap the big profits.

[Miss Authoritiva]

9. Absolutely.

Think of that: This is one of the most heavily subsidized sectors of the US economy and both the government and Big Pharma give us a well-manicured middle finger.

Are we stupid or what?

[Nambe]

7. Canada's Rx's are bringing in drugs from all over the world....

to fill US orders and it's working. That's why the busted ship was in Florida. They are monitoring quality and had contacted customs in advance with no complaint from customs. My guess is that Jeb probably steped in to back his sponsors.

[Hoping4Change]

8. That is untrue.

Cnadaian health regulations are very strict and drugs can't be shipped in from anywhere. A recent AARP article addresses this:


From, or through, Canada?
But the more difficult question is whether cautious consumers who take the trouble to check that they're buying from a licensed Canadian pharmacy can be sure they're getting Health Canada-approved meds.


Sadly, there seem to be plenty of consumers who will order drugs off any Web site that displays a maple leaf. For about a year, the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy (NABP), an umbrella group for state pharmacy regulators, has collected complaints about drugs mail-ordered from Canada. Typical claims include orders that are paid for but never arrive, or that arrive from unexpected locations (including India and Thailand) and pills that are suspected placebos or counterfeits.

Most of the problems involve rogue Web-site operators that, despite the Canadian flag on the home page, have no connection to a licensed Canadian pharmacy. These are the same outfits that are spewing spam into our e-mail boxes to tout "Vi@gra" and "V1codin." Kiplinger's visited several of the sites that prompted complaints to the NABP, and most bore the hallmark of a dangerous drug source: the claim that a prescription from your doctor isn't required.

http://moneycentral.msn.com/content/Insurance/Insureyou...

[BrotherBuzz]

5. Kerry better go!

and he would do well to have Mark Dayton, US Senator from Minnesota, who donates his annual Senate salary of $145,000 to the Minnesota Seniors Federation to subsidize monthly bus trips to Winnipeg sitting at his side.

WE CAN DO BETTER!

[Upfront]

10. Kerry Better Do It.

Kerry should meet this train at the last stop before the border and tell the seniors he will do all he can to make their train unnecessary if he is elected. I would not be supprised if Michigan Sen. Debbie Stabenow rides this train. She has battled like hell on this issue. In Michigan we can be proud of both our Sen.

[mom cat]

11. This was posted earlier today on the FED bust of Canadian drugs

bound to seniors in Minnesota. Kerry better get on board the train.



Nambe (1000+ posts) Wed Aug-11-04 04:03 PM
Original message
Minnesota seniors' drugs seized (in Fla.)



Star Tribune


U.S. customs officials in Miami have seized a prescription drug shipment from a Canadian pharmacy with about 350 orders, half intended for members of the Minnesota Senior Federation, officials said Tuesday.

The drugs were shipped about two weeks ago by CanadaRx, based in Toronto, the primary pharmacy used by the Senior Federation.

Even more remarkable than the seizure itself -- reportedly the largest U.S. interception of low-cost drugs from a Canadian mail-order pharmacy, valued at $250,000 -- were the sources. ..

Harvey Organ, an owner of CanadaRx, said his firm talked with FDA officials before opening the office in the Bahamas July 1.

"They knew what we were doing," he said. "We keep talking with those guys, and they listen and smile and then they pull something like this." ..

Wyckoff said his organization gave CanadaRx permission to begin procuring drugs from other countries, "and we're comfortable with that. We know CanadaRx, and we know the standards in the other countries are excellent."

[BrotherBuzz]

12. Thanks for the heads up...

I kept passing that thread all day without stopping to read it - lazy me.

And how about this news story that has the FDA sowing fear in the public. What is it with this misadmistration? FEAR, FEAR, FEAR 24/7!





http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2004-08-11-terr ...

FDA fears terrorists may target food, drugs

<snip>

WASHINGTON (AP) Tampering with prescription drugs could be a way for terrorists to launch an attack on Americans, acting Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Lester Crawford said Wednesday.

Crawford said in an interview with The Associated Press that possible action by terrorists was the most serious of his concerns about the increasing efforts of states and cities to import drugs from Canada to save money.
...
A spokesman for the Homeland Security Department said it has received "no specific information" ofsuch a threat.

"We do acknowledge that al-Qaeda and other terrorist groups have studied agroterrorism techniques and have probably considered that tactic with regard to destabilizing the United States," said Brian Roehrkasse, spokesman for the Homeland Security Department. "While we must assume that such a threat exists generally, we have no specific information now about any al-Qaeda threats to our food or drug supply."

<more>

http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2004-08-11-terr ...


Kerry needs to get on that train and start tooting the horn!

WE CAN DO BETTER!