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"About a month ago, we released a
report showing that if we import prescription drugs from Canada, the
state of Illinois and consumers could save nearly $91 million. And
we found that importing prescription drugs from Canada is as safe
and, in some cases, even safer than purchasing prescription drugs
here in the United States," Blagojevich said. "Since then, the FDA
and the big drug companies have done everything in their power to
undermine our efforts.
They have used scare tactics. They have
dispatched hundreds of lobbyists to Capitol Hill. They have even
gone so far as to limit supply to Canada. Why? To protect their
profit margins, at the people's expense."
Five major drug companies --
AstraZeneca, Eli Lilly, GlaxoSmithKline, Pfizer and Wyeth -- each
took steps in recent months to limit supplies to Canada to curb
cross-border sales. Their action came as an increasing number of
Americans are turning to Canada for affordable prescription drugs.
Recently Illinois and other states and cities announced plans to
explore ways to help save money for taxpayers and consumers by
buying prescription drugs from Canada, where the same medications
cost 30 percent to 50 percent less. Illinois' team of experts found
that the state and its 230,000 employees and retirees could save a
combined $91 million a year by purchasing a limited list of
name-brand FDA-approved drugs from approved Canadian pharmacies.
"We are not going to sit back, watch
the big drug companies use their muscle to force Americans to pay
the highest prices in the world for prescription drugs, and not do
anything about it. I simply won't let that happen," Blagojevich
said. "Starting today, we will review the products of every company
that limits supply to Canada. When the same drug is also made by a
company that is not limiting supplies to Canada, we're going to take
their drugs off of our preferred list, which would give our health
plan participants an incentive to buy the same drug made by another
manufacturer instead," the governor explained.
In many cases, more than one drug is
available to treat a certain illness or condition. The governor
wants to ensure that people covered by state-sponsored health
programs have access to drugs made by companies that are not
penalizing Americans and Canadians for trying to import lower-priced
medications.
Blagojevich is instructing the pharmacy
and therapeutics committees from 12 state-sponsored programs, which
establish the list of drugs that are covered by each program, to
look for alternatives to replace drugs that are on their formularies
and are made by the five companies involved in limiting supplies to
Canada. Within 45 days, the committees' recommendations will be
forwarded to the state's special advocates on prescription drugs,
who will make a final determination on which drugs to replace.
For the one non-managed care plan that
serves state employees and retirees, the review could result in more
alternatives being made available at the lowest co-pay level. The
review could also result in name-brand drugs made by companies that
limit supply to Canada being removed from the preferred drug list
and available at the highest applicable co-pay, which is currently
$28 per 30-day supply. Each of the nine managed care programs in the
state employee and retiree system will be requested to take similar
action.
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The departments of Corrections and
Human Services each have a preferred drug list, so drugs that are
removed and replaced with safe alternatives will be covered only if
the prescribing physician obtains preapproval from the health plan.
Physicians are more likely to prescribe
drugs that are available on the second tier or preferred list, so
consumers under Illinois' plans will steer away from the drugs that
are removed from the list in favor of the preferred alternatives.
"While we will not do anything that
threatens patient safety or increases their cost, when all things
are equal, we will do everything we can to drive business away from
the drug companies that are hurting the American people,"
Blagojevich said.
As Americans struggle harder every year
to afford prescription drugs, the companies that make drugs continue
to realize record profits. In 2002, the median profit rate for all
companies in the Fortune 500 was only 3.1 percent, but the median
rate for drugs companies was 17 percent. In fact, the profits of the
top 10 drug companies made up more than half of all profits netted
by all Fortune 500 companies combined.
And, contrary to their claims, drug
makers are not investing more in research and development but
instead are pouring money into efforts to keep prices and profits
high. Despite profits of 17 percent, drug companies spent only 14
percent on research and development of new drugs -- and much of that
was on developing equivalents to existing drugs, not on developing
new, innovative medications. By comparison, the same companies spent
nearly 31 percent of their budgets on marketing and administration.
As Americans increase the pressure on
lawmakers to find new solutions for making drugs more affordable,
the pharmaceutical industry has responded by significantly boosting
spending on lobbying efforts in Washington, D.C, where pressure is
growing for legislation to help Americans obtain lower drug prices.
According to a study by the independent organization Public Citizen,
the drug industry increased spending on lobbying activities by more
than 11 percent from 2001 to 2002. The industry hired 675 lobbyists
in 2002 -- almost seven for every one member of the U.S. Senate.
"The state of Illinois currently spends
$2.1 billion each year on prescription drugs. If we can shift some
of that spending away from the drug companies who are limiting
supplies to Canada, the drug companies will start to feel it. If
other states join us, they'll feel it even more. In fact, I am
sending a letter to my fellow 49 governors today, encouraging them
to follow our lead and show the big drug companies they can't get
away with harming the American consumer," Blagojevich said.
"When the
big drug companies hear that we're doing this, they'll complain.
They'll make threats. They'll try to scare people. That's what they
always do. But one of the most interesting things about the debate
over importing prescription drugs from Canada is this: The people
see right through the FDA's false claims. They see right through the
big drug companies' scare tactics. The American people know they're
paying way too much for prescription drugs, and they've had enough.
You can't stop an idea whose time has come. And that's exactly why
we'll fight and fight, and ultimately succeed, in helping people
save money on the cost [of] prescription drugs."
[News release from the
governor's office] |
