Trump administration to explore allowing drug imports to counter price hikes

[Eugene]

Source: Washington Post

Trump administration to explore allowing drug imports to counter price hikes

By Laurie McGinley
July 19 at 8:14 AM

The Trump administration is cracking open the door to using drugs imported from overseas to combat high drug prices in limited circumstances.

Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar on Thursday directed the Food and Drug Administration to create a working group to examine how to safely import prescription drugs from other countries in the event of a dramatic price increase for a drug produced by one manufacturer and not protected by patents. Such imports “could help address price hikes and supply disruptions that are harming American patients,” Azar said in a statement.

Azar singled out the 2015 case of the drug Daraprim, whose price was famously hiked 5,000 percent by Martin Shkreli.

“Safe, select avenues for importation could be one of the answers to these challenges,” Azar said. In such situations, administration officials said, an imported alternative could provide a new avenue for competition to drive down prices. They added that importation would be limited to cases where drugs can be imported with adequate assurances of safety and effectiveness.

-snip-

Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/to-your-health/wp/2018/07/19/trump-administration-to-explore-drug-imports-to-counter-price-hikes/

[beachbum bob]

1. Why not simply allow Medicare and Medicaid the power to negotiate

Drug prices? A simpler solution

[KCDebbie]

2. Or regulate the U.S. Pharmaceutical industry...

This industry along with the fire-arm manufacturing industry operates with virtually NO checks!

[beachbum bob]

4. The simplest method is to allow Medicare and Medicaid the ability

[Mosby]

7. how does that help people who dont have either one?

[beachbum bob]

8. It will, as it is now...big pharma has zero incentive. Other insurers will jump on

Them just like Medicare and Medicaid.

[exboyfil]

3. Great point

And they should go into the negotiations holding the Canadian price. The biggest buyer should always get the best price.

[Ohiogal]

5. But how do you negotiate drog prices

when the drug in question is only manufactured by one company, and there's very little demand for it but absolutely crucial to a very small select group of people?

[Mosby]

6. since Rs and Ds support free trade these days

Then they should support free markets. That means I should be able to go to Mexico or Canada to buy drugs, and go have surgery in Costa Rica and get my teeth worked on in Israel or Mexico. You know in Mexico you can get implants for less than 100 dollars per tooth, compare that to the US where they can be as much as 2000 each. Israel is advertising dental holidays, the whole vacation package is still a fraction of the cost of dental work in the US.

If people are serious about free trade, then all Americans should be free to price shop anywhere in the world. If that means US doctors, hospitals, pharmaceutical companies make less money, oh well.

The only thing that will lower health and dental care costs in the US is competition. Free trade is a double edged sword.


Eta this has actually been going on for a long time, I have a relative who I used to drive down to nogales for some fertility shot. She paid about 1200 per shot compared to 3500 in the us. No prescription required. Americans should be able to do this via online ordering.

[beachbum bob]

9. Nothing stops you right now so what is your point?

[Mosby]

10. you cant ship drugs into the us

I live in phx az so it's not much of a trip to the border, most Americans can't do that.

I talked to several doctors about drugs from Mexico, they told me that they are made by the same drug companies.

The pricing is based on the ability to pay not the actual cost of the drug plus a markup. India for example has some of the lowest drug prices in the world, but as an American, you and I cannot order drugs from there. That's bullshit.

[sinkingfeeling]

11. But, but for years we've been warned and threatened not to buy drugs

from places like Canada and India.