From the Pasadena (Calif.) Star News:
Canadian drug debate heats up
As state lawmakers push to give Californians greater access to cheap prescription drugs from Canada, the U.S. pharmaceutical industry is sounding the alarm about dangerous counterfeit drugs flooding the import market.

The latest salvo in the prescription drug wars came Thursday at a press conference in South Pasadena.

Citing reports from the United States Food and Drug Administration, representatives from the California Pharmacists Association warned consumers against buying medicines from outside the U.S., saying they pose a significant health risk.

From the Union Leader (NH):
Benson hits the road to promote drug plan
Buying drugs through CanadaDrugs.com is safe, cheaper and the right thing to do — even though the Food and Drug Administration disapproves, Gov. Craig Benson told senior citizens yesterday at the Centennial Senior Center and Horseshoe Pond Place.

Canadian wholesale price limits and a stronger U.S. dollar can produce savings of 30 to 80 percent for those buying Canadian drugs, Benson said.

“The FDA is a little cranky with me for doing this, but we’re going ahead anyway,” the governor said as he personally guided seniors on a laptop computer to the state link connecting them with the Canadian web site. The link is accessed through www.nh.gov/governor.

From the Miami Herald:
Massachusetts Biotech Council Warns against Allowing Drug Imports
The Massachusetts Biotechnology Council distributed a not-so-subtle message on Canadian drug imports yesterday at the State House.

Tucked into information kits was a letter from a North Carolina official inviting Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. of Cambridge to pack up and move its 450 jobs south. The reason? Because the Bay State is considering bringing in cheaper foreign drugs that could hurt biotech companies.

From the (Madison, Wisc.) Capital Times:
Buying Canada drugs planned
The Oak Creek City Council has voted unanimously to look into the possibility of creating a program under which municipal employees and retirees could voluntarily purchase their prescription drugs from Canada.

It acted on a proposal from Ald. Al Foeckler, who said the move could save the Milwaukee suburb more than $100,000 a year.

From the Boston Globe:
Benson unveils state Internet link to Canadian pharmacy
Insisting that profits -- not safety -- are fueling the debate over prescription drugs, Gov. Craig Benson has unveiled a link on the official state Web site to a Canadian pharmacy that exports drugs to the United States.

"I will not stand by and watch our seniors overpay for lifesaving medication," Benson said.

Benson said pharmaceutical companies demand higher prices for their products in America to boost their profits.

From the Indianapolis Star:
Lilly to air import concerns to panel
Eli Lilly and Co. has uncovered two cases of tampered or substandard Lilly drugs being imported into the United States from Canada and recently worked with two other drugmakers to break an erectile dysfunction drug counterfeiting ring in China.

The Indianapolis drugmaker will discuss those cases and others today in testimony in Rockville, Md., before a federal task force on drug importation.

Lilly's disclosures about its stepped-up anti-counterfeiting measures "go much further than we've ever gone before in providing information about our investigations," said company spokesman Edward Sagebiel.

From MSN:
Two-in-one pills a tonic for sickly drugs industry
Why take two pills when one will do?

That's the message from drug firms pushing a new generation of combination medicines which may help fill corporate coffers and limit the impact of generic competition after a lean period in research laboratories.

On April 2, Germany became the first European country to approve a combination of Merck & Co Inc's (MRK) cholesterol medicine Zocor with Zetia, a new kind of drug that reduces the amount of cholesterol absorbed in the gut.

The combination, which will be marketed as Inegy in Europe and Vytorin in North America, is pivotal for Merck and co-developer Schering-Plough Corp (SGP) and is expected by analysts to garner eventual annual sales of $2 billion to $8 billion. It is likely to win U.S. approval later this year.

From CBC.ca:
New Hampshire governor unveils state Internet link to Canadian pharmacy
Gov. Craig Benson on Monday unveiled a link on the state's official website to a Canadian pharmacy that exports cheaper drugs to the United States.

"I will not stand by and watch our seniors overpay for lifesaving medication," he said. "The pharmaceutical industry has balanced their books on the backs of seniors for too long." David Minnis, spokesman for the New Hampshire Pharmacists Association, said the governor is "putting the state at risk," echoing criticism last week from the Food and Drug Administration.

Jean Coutu to pay $2.38 billion US for 1,538 Eckerd drug stores
Jean Coutu Group of Longueuil, Quebec, will pay $2.38 billion US in cash to buy 1,539 Eckerd drugstores from J.C. Penney Co., the firms announced Monday.

The acquisition will make Jean Coutu the fourth-largest drugstore chain in North America with 2,196 stores.

Jean Coutu Group already owns 332 U.S. drugstores under the Brooks Pharmacy name in six northeastern states. Coutu is the second-biggest Canadian drugstore chain after Shoppers Drug Mart, with more than 320 outlets; most are in Quebec.

From Bloomberg:
New Hampshire Is 3rd State With Canada-Drug Web Site
New Hampshire Governor Craig Benson introduced a Web site to link residents to a Canadian online pharmacy for access to cheaper medicines and information about safety and state programs, the third U.S. governor to do so.

The site has a link to CanadaDrugs.Com, based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Last week, a Benson-appointed panel said the pharmacy is a safe source of medicines. A state health department study showed the prescription drugs were identical to U.S. versions. Benson said his Web site, similar to ones in Minnesota and Wisconsin, will help seniors who lack prescription coverage.

From the Indianapolis Business Journal:
Playing the name game
The first erectile dysfunction drugs to make U.S. debuts also cornered the market on manliness. Pfizer Inc.'s Viagra evokes images of power and fluid motion, like mighty Niagara Falls, said branding consultant Anthony Shore.

Levitra, developed by Bayer Pharmaceuticals and GlaxoSmithKline Plc, also connotes power and, of course, levitation or elevation, Shore added.

The third entrant, Cialis, dared to be different. The name of that drug, developed by Indianapolis-based Eli Lilly and Co. and Bothell, Wash.-based ICOS Corp., tugs at the heartstrings.

Added new link on links page: rxsanity.org

From CNEWS:
Internet pharmacies line up in Winnipeg for accreditation program
Some Canadian Internet pharmacies are turning to an American accreditation program to reassure cautious U.S. states that want to set up websites to help uninsured people get cheaper drugs.

"What we are doing is satisfying the concern of the states and the individual citizens within the U.S. who are on the bubble a little bit about whether to purchase in Canada," said David MacKay, executive director of the Canadian International Pharmacy Association.

From the La Crosse (Wisc.) Tribune:
Hunting down a drug cost cure
Joan Geary of La Crosse started ordering her prescription drugs from Canada about three years ago after sending for a booklet that advertised pharmacies where drugs could be purchased by mail at big savings.

"I didn't realize it was illegal, but when your bills get up to $600, $700 a month, you have to do something," said Geary, who orders seven or eight prescriptions from a Canadian pharmacy for a total of $800 every three months.

Geary, 74, said she orders her drugs by phone or the Internet. The process is simple, and Geary said she believes it is safe.

From the Portsmouth (NH) Herald:
Critics wary of Canadian drugs
The Food and Drug Administration on Friday continued to rebut Gov. Craig Benson’s claims that prescription drugs he imported from Canada are just as safe as American versions.

Benson, who wants the federal government to give New Hampshire a waiver to order drugs from Canada for Medicaid patients and state prisoners, recently filled prescriptions for six common medications through Canada-Drugs.com and at two New Hampshire pharmacies.

From the Miami Herald:
Web drug sales to U.S. double
Canada's Internet pharmacies more than doubled sales to U.S. customers in 2003 to C$825 million ($631 million), threatening Canada's drug supply, according to an industry group's study.

From the Canadian Press:
Pharmacists file complaints in Man., B.C., about two Internet pharmacies
Pharmacists opposed to the Internet pharmacy industry want regulators in Manitoba and British Columbia to investigate whether two companies are illegally helping Americans buy cheap drugs from other countries.

The thorny question of trans-shipping cheap prescription drugs from other countries through Canada to uninsured Americans has been a focal point in the intensifying cross-border debate over the $1-billion US industry.

Jean Coutu confirms talks on U.S. acquisition: deal for Eckerd said imminent
Jean Coutu Group confirmed Friday that it is "engaged in negotiations" on a major American acquisition, a deal that could more than double the size of Canada's second-biggest drug store chain.

The announcement came after stock in the Montreal company had risen 3.8 per cent Thursday on anticipation of a deal to buy part of the Eckerd pharmacy chain from J. C. Penney Co. Coutu's brief statement Friday did not mention Eckerd by name, saying only that "due to the confidential nature and competitive aspect of those negotiations, the company cannot disclose any more information on the matter nor can it make any statement as to their outcome."

From the Minot (ND) Daily News:
Study of drug importation issues
It could be a few months or longer before North Dakota pharmacies know whether they will be able to buy and resell prescription drugs from Canada.

Howard Anderson, Turtle Lake, executive director of the North Dakota Pharmacy Board, said a response from the secretary of U.S. Health and Human Services to a proposed pilot project in North Dakota could come this summer, although the earliest might be the end of June.

From the Canadian Press:
Internet pharmacies issue 'cry for help' in face of dwindling supply
The Canadian International Pharmacy Association issued a "cry for help" to the industry's U.S. supporters Thursday, saying Internet pharmacies are being driven to the brink of collapse by sales restrictions imposed by drug manufacturers. By focusing their efforts on lobbying the U.S. government to legalize the importation of cheaper prescription drugs from Canada, sympathetic U.S. politicians have failed to realize there might not be any drugs left to buy, said executive director David MacKay.

Quebec-based drugstore chain Jean Coutu reported near deal for Eckerd
Shares of drugstore chain Jean Coutu Group traded higher and faster Thursday as the stock market anticipated a major acquisition by Canada's No. 2 pharmacy operator in the United States.

Fresh reports suggested the Quebec-based company is close to a deal to buy part of the giant Eckerd drugstore chain from J. C. Penney Co.

From The Age (Australia):
Pharmacists to the rescue in medical mix-ups
Pharmacists could be saving hundreds of lives each year by advising patients not to follow their doctors' orders, a study has found.

An analysis of eight major Australian hospitals found that 15 patients avoided death in one month because of intervention by pharmacists who second-guessed prescriptions supplied by doctors.

An independent clinical panel at each hospital considered the changes that the pharmacists made to be life-saving.

The director of pharmacy at the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Michael Dooley, tracked almost 25,000 patients in one month. In that time, the intervention of pharmacists also reduced the potential for patients to be readmitted to hospital 156 times, and reduced the length of hospital stays on 88 occasions.

From the Winnipeg Sun:
Growth in Net drugs
The governor of New Hampshire is the latest American politician to urge citizens with no medical insurance to buy their drugs from Canadian Internet pharmacies -- the majority of which are located in Manitoba. Gov. Craig Benson is also endorsing mail-order pharmacy CanadaDrugs.com located in Winnipeg after sending two pharmacists here last month, the Portsmouth Herald reported.

Benson and the state's human services commissioner concluded the Internet company was safe, efficient and inexpensive, despite claims to the contrary by some American drug manufacturers and pharmacists, according to the Herald.

From the Baltimore Sun:
Senate pursues drugs plan
The Maryland Senate took a step yesterday toward helping thousands of residents buy lower-cost prescription drugs from Canada, granting preliminary approval to legislation requiring state health officials to seek federal permission for an importation plan.

Prescription medications can be 50 percent cheaper in Canada, where they are purchased by the national government at a lower price. U.S. law prohibits individuals or governments from buying foreign medications, but Maryland could join a growing number of states bucking that rule.

From the Sacramento Bee:
Editorial: Canadian bandwagon
Hmmm. Is that a trend we detect? Is the pharmaceutical industry listening?

The political support for maintaining a federal law that bans the importation of prescription drugs from other countries such as Canada is crumbling. Sacramento County is among the many local and state governments that are wondering whether to openly violate this law in order to lower their skyrocketing pharmaceutical costs. (The county in its clinics dispenses more than 1,500 prescriptions every day.) Meanwhile in Washington, staunch defenders of the drug industry, such as Sen. Trent Lott of Mississippi, are softening their stand.

From the Sarasota (FL) Herald Tribune:
N.H. Governor details Canadian drug purchases, FDA reacts
Gov. Craig Benson used his credit card to order a half-dozen brand-name medicines online from a Canadian mail-order pharmacy and had them mailed to his home.

"I was just any public citizen as far as they knew," Benson said at a news conference Wednesday.

From WPTV-TV (FL):
Palm Beach County may import prescriptions from Canada for workers
Palm Beach County commissioners decided Tuesday to pursue the possibility of illegally buying prescription drugs from Canada for government employees and retirees, which would put the county at the forefront of the raging national debate over high drug prices.

Commissioners Burt Aaronson and Tony Masilotti dismissed a warning from Assistant County Attorney Tammy Fields that the county would be violating federal law. They said anti-importation rules simply are a result of drug-industry political victories and predicted the county would never be prosecuted for a violation.

From WMAR-TV (MD):
Senate poised to approve bill calling for state mail-order pharmacy
The Senate is poised to approve legislation that would lay the foundation for the state to import Canadian prescription drugs for uninsured Marylanders and state employees. The proposal, however, is pinned on getting the permission of federal health officials, who so far have opposed the practice.

Plowing through a roster of bills with 13 days remaining in the 2004 General Assembly session, senators of both parties gave the bill preliminary approval with a 37-10 vote. If passed, it would then head to the House for consideration.

"It's a fine line between paying your fair share and being a chump," said Sen. E.J. Pipkin, an Eastern Shore Republican.

From Newhouse News:
Congress May Vote This Summer on Prescription Drug Imports
Congress' search for a cure for the surging costs of prescription drugs has always stopped at the border.

Some seniors have skirted U.S. law by mail-ordering cheaper prescription medicines from Canada and Mexico. City mayors and the state of Minnesota have sought budget savings by buying foreign drugs for public employees.

From The Hill:
Reimportation makes gains
In a move that could have wide-ranging ramifications in this year’s healthcare debate, Sen. Judd Gregg (R-N.H.) has begun drafting his own bill to allow for the reimportation of prescription drugs from other countries. The bill, which Gregg plans to unveil in the next few weeks, will be a narrower alternative to a version that passed the House last year.

From CBC.ca:
Canadian team to test if vaccine controls HIV infection
Canadian researchers will test a therapeutic HIV vaccine in the hopes of reducing the need for drug cocktails and their side effects.

Doctors will recruit HIV patients in Ottawa and in Montreal to test the potential vaccine. The therapeutic vaccine isn't meant to prevent HIV but to help people who are already infected.

From the Portsmouth (NH) Herald:
Benson: Canadian pharmacy a safe source for drugs
Gov. Craig Benson gave his stamp of approval to a Canadian mail-order pharmacy Monday, saying it is a safe alternative for state residents who can’t afford to fill their prescriptions in the United States.

Benson and Department of Health and Human Services Commissioner John Stephen sent two pharmacists to investigate CanadaDrugs.com, in Winnipeg, Manitoba, last month.

From MLive.com (Mich.):
Lilly steps up battle against Canadian Internet pharmacies
Eli Lilly and Co. has escalated its campaign to curb Canadian drug reimportation by requiring Canadian Internet pharmacies to tell Lilly how much of Lilly's drugs they order from wholesalers or possibly be cut off from supplies.

In a letter to Canadian Internet drug retailers and Lilly's authorized Canadian wholesalers, the Indianapolis-based company outlined a policy to help Lilly more closely track cross-border flow of its drugs, Lilly spokesman Ed Sagebiel said Tuesday.

From the Baltimore Sun:
Senate pursues drugs plan
The Maryland Senate took a step Tuesday toward helping thousands of residents buy lower-cost prescription drugs from Canada, granting preliminary approval to legislation requiring state health officials to seek federal permission for an importation plan.

Prescription medications can be 50 percent cheaper in Canada, where they are purchased by the national government at a lower price. U.S. law prohibits individuals or governments from buying foreign medications, but Maryland could join a growing number of states bucking that rule.

From the Palm Beach (FL) Post:
County considering using medicines from Canada
County commissioners are exploring ways to supply their employees with low-price prescription drugs from Canada despite warnings from their attorneys that the imports are illegal under federal law.

"The fact of the matter is we are paying too much for our drugs," said Commissioner Burt Aaronson, who pushed for staff to research the issue.

The county is not alone in looking to Canada for relief from soaring health-care costs. Cities in Massachusetts and Vermont are defying the law by purchasing brand-name drugs from Canada. Aside from the savings, it's a movement to put pressure on the prescription drug industry and Congress to lower drug prices.

From the Canadian Press:
Health groups call on Martin to ban Internet pharmacies
The federal government should ban Internet pharmacies because the industry is putting the health of Canadians at risk, a group of health-care advocates said Tuesday.

The Canadian Treatment Action Council, an advocacy and education group for people living with HIV/AIDS, and the Canadian Hemophilia Society were among six groups that called on Prime Minister Paul Martin in a news release to outlaw the pharmacies.

From the Miami Herald:
Palm Beach commissioners consider illegal Canadian prescriptions
Palm Beach County commissioners decided Tuesday to pursue the possibility of illegally buying prescription drugs from Canada for government employees.

Such a move would put the county at the front of the angry national debate over prescription drug prices.

Assistant County Attorney Tammy Fields warned that it would violate federal law, but Commissioners Tony Masilotti predicted the county would never be prosecuted, the South Florida Sun-Sentinel reported.

From the AARP Bulletin:
Drug Companies Cut Canadian Supply
Older Americans who rely on Canadian pharmacies to obtain prescription drugs at prices they can afford have reacted in anger and alarm to the news that Pfizer has choked off their pipeline.

Four other drugmakers have tried to limit supplies to Canadian pharmacies that sell by mail order to Americans, but Pfizer is the first to make a total boycott succeed.

From WNNE-TV (NH):
Report Finds Canadian Pharmacy Safe, Clean
Gov. Craig Benson said Monday that a Canadian mail-order pharmacy provides safe prescription drugs at less cost than American pharmacies.

The governor released a fact-finding report from a pair of local pharmacists that visited CanadaDrugs.com in Winnipeg, Manitoba, as part of an ongoing effort to introduce cheaper, imported medicine to New Hampshire patients.

"Canada is not a third-world country, as some people in the drug industry might have us believe," Benson said.

From the Californian.com:
Salinas writes prescription for rocketing drug prices
Salinas retiree Ed Maples, 84, says he spends 70 percent of his pension and Social Security payment each month on prescription drugs and his health insurance premium.

His problem is one that two California Assemblymen hope to fix with their plan for lowering skyrocketing prescription drug costs.

Assemblyman Simón Salinas, D-Salinas, and Assembly Majority Leader Dario Frommer, D-Glendale, came to Clinica de Salud in Salinas on Friday to plug a package of bills called the "Affordable Prescription Drug Act of 2004."

From the Miami Herald:
Senior Citizens Increase Pressure for Drug-Importation Bill
An elderly couple sit on their living room couch, quietly eating their dinners from trays as they watch vivid television images of police using dogs to make a drug bust.

The announcer first warns of the high cost of illegal drugs to society, then quickly switches gears to call for lowering the price of prescription drugs, chiefly by allowing the importation of pharmaceuticals from Canada.

From Innovations Report:
U of T researchers one step closer to creating oral insulin
University of Toronto researchers have shown that "designer molecules" can interact with the body’s insulin receptor, a step toward the development of an oral medication for diabetes.

U of T professors Lakshmi Kotra, Cecil Yip, Peter Ottensmeyer and Robert Batey have created the first small molecules using the three-dimensional structure of the insulin receptor. A receptor is the site on the surface of a cell to which molecules with specific tasks, such as hormones, attach themselves. Insulin’s task is to initiate the utilization of sugar in the blood.

From WCCO-TV (Minn.):
State Program To Buy Canadian Prescription Drugs Is Busy
Officials say that nearly 400 Minnesotans have ordered low-cost prescription drugs from Canada through a state-operated program started two months ago by Governor Pawlenty.

At the same time, the Minnesota RxConnect Web site has been visited more than 67-thousand times, and its phone line has received 14-hundred-and-50 calls.

From the New Orleans Times-Picayune:
War over drug imports heats up
Congress' search for a cure to the surging costs of prescription drugs has always stopped at the border.

Some seniors have skirted U.S. law by mail-ordering cheaper prescription medicines from Canada and Mexico. City mayors and the state of Minnesota sought budget savings by buying foreign drugs for public employees.

From WGRZ-TV (NY):
Queen City Councilman Wants to Consider Canadian Prescription Plan for Workers
A Common Councilman wants the Queen City to consider Canada when buying prescription drugs for its workers.

In a recent resolution passed by the Common Council, the Buffalo’s Human Resources Commissioner was asked to investigate that possibility, and file a report with the Council no later than April 8th.

"You can get these drugs in Canada at a much lower cost than in the United States," said Delaware District Councilman Marc Coppola.

From Minnesota Public Radio:
Pawlenty vs. the FDA
Minnesota's Web site contains information on two Canadian pharmacies, one in Vancouver and one in Calgary. It's part of Gov. Pawlenty's strategy for streamlining access to cheaper prescription drugs available across the border, where government price controls keep costs down.

The Web site includes an order form that must be printed out and mailed or faxed to the pharmacies. There's no direct link to the two pharmacies, and prescriptions can't be ordered through the Web site. At a prescription drug summit in Washington, D.C., Gov. Pawlenty said the site addresses safety concerns.

"It reflects the work that we have done by going to visit and to evaluate various Canadian pharmacies, to make sure that they are safe and reputable and established and credible," Pawlenty said.

Investment board demands Pfizer end battle against Canadian imports
The State Board of Investment waded into the prescription drug debate by trying to hit Pfizer where it hurts the most -- the bottom line. The board approved a resolution to ask Pfizer shareholders to begin the process of forcing the pharmaceutical company to restructure its global prescription drug pricing system.

The proposal, initiated by Gov. Tim Pawlenty, also calls on Pfizer to continue shipping drugs to all wholesalers in Canada and to fully disclose its lobbying, legal and marketing costs.

Pawlenty says the state will now take the resolution to the company's annual meeting, with the hopes that other shareholders will vote in favor of it. If it gets enough shareholder support, Pawlenty says it would force Pfizer to lower the cost of prescription drugs in the U.S.