U.S. Eases Restrictions on Canadian Drug Imports
Posted on: 11/06/06
As of October 9, 2006, the Department of Homeland security announced that it would stop confiscating prescription drugs Americans order by mail from Canadian pharmacies. According to an article posted on the California Health Advocates website, prior to this policy change, the U.S. government was confiscating as much as 20 percent of the shipments, totaling over 37,000 prescription drug orders as of July, 2006.
The FDA has said that consumer safety is a primary concern, and that "many drugs obtained from foreign sources that purport and appear to be the same as U.S.-approved prescription drugs, are, in fact, of unknown quality." However, an article from Consumer Reports entitled, "Prescription Drugs: the Facts About Canada" seems to cast doubt on that argument. The article states, "Canada's manufacturing and regulatory system is comparable to that of the U.S." To read the article at the Consumer Reports website, click here.
The U.S. drug industry opposes legalizing the importation of prescription medications from Canada, also stating that doing so would undermine the government's ability to have proper quality control.
The Canadian International Pharmacy Association (CIPA) has an approval process for websites that sell prescription drugs. In order for a vendor to display a CIPA seal on its website, an online pharmacy must have a valid Canadian license, submit to a quarterly on-site inspection, and keep personal information confidential.