by Gabriel Levitt, President, PharmacyChecker.com and Prescription Justice | Dec 26, 2019 | Drug Prices
The following statement, recently published in the Congressional Record, was submitted by Gabriel Levitt on October 30, 2019, on behalf of PharmacyChecker and Prescription Justice, to the Committee on Ways and Means of the U.S. House of Representatives 116th Congress pertaining to a hearing entitled: “Investing In The U.S. Health System By Lowering Drug Prices, Reducing, Out-of-Pocket Costs and Improving the Medicare Benefit”.
“Investing In The U.S.
Health System By Lowering Drug Prices, Reducing, Out-of-Pocket Costs and
Improving the Medicare Benefit”
October 29, 2019
Gabriel Levitt
Co-founder and President, PharmacyChecker.com, 333 Mamaroneck Avenue, White Plains, NY 10605, 718-554-3067, gabriel.levitt@pharmacychecker.com
Founder and President, Prescription Justice, 3309 Robbins Road,
#412, Springfield, Illinois 62704, gabriel@prescriptionjustice.org
Our company, PharmacyChecker.com verifies online pharmacies,
and compares drug prices among those accredited in our online pharmacy Verification
Program. Consumers, Americans and worldwide, access our website for free. Our
website has received about 30 million visitors since we launched our virtual
doors in 2003. Our niche is comparative pricing and the proper credentialing of
international online pharmacies, which process prescription drug orders filled
by licensed pharmacies in several countries, require valid prescriptions, and
do not ship controlled drugs into the U.S. We also provide information about
discounted U.S. pharmacy prices and patient assistance programs. The information we provide helps people make
the best decisions for themselves and their families when struggling with the
cost of prescription drugs.[i]
(more…)Tagged with: Congressional House Ways and Means Committee
by Gabriel Levitt, President, PharmacyChecker.com and Prescription Justice | Dec 20, 2019 | Drug Importation
The FDA has done something that prescription drug
importation advocates had possibly given up on. Not me. The agency drafted a new
proposed rule to allow importation from Canada of lower-cost drugs and industry
guidance for drug manufacturers to import their FDA-approved foreign drug
versions, for which they can charge lower prices. The proposed rule provides
specifics so that states contemplating or already formulating wholesale drug
importation programs have a shot at gaining approval for those programs, per
Section 804 of the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act.
Year after year after year, the media has reported Pharma’s
talking point: No Secretary of Health and Human Services, Republican or
Democrat, has been able to certify the safety of importation from Canada.
That’s never been true, at least not exactly. It’s not that they haven’t been
able. It’s that they haven’t been willing. Also, it’s not just certifying the
safety, it’s certifying that there will be “no additional” safety risk – a high
standard. Well, apparently it can be done. The FDA stated:
(more…)Tagged with: Drug and Cosmetic Act
by Gabriel Levitt, President, PharmacyChecker.com and Prescription Justice | Dec 12, 2019 | Drug Safety
Canada believes it is too small to facilitate U.S. wholesale importation of lower-cost drugs. This post will explore a much greater potential for importation from the European Union.
Opponents of
Americans buying less expensive drugs from overseas pharmacies (i.e. personal
importation) often rely on the common belief that the U.S. Food and Drug
Administration exemplifies the “gold standard” in drug safety. This “gold standard”
importation talking point from the
Pharmaceutical and Researchers of America (PhRMA) fuels Americans’ fear of ordering medication
internationally despite proof that importation can be very safe and provide
financial relief and better adherence to prescriptions:
“The United States is the gold standard when it comes to regulating the safety of our medicine supply. Importing medicines from countries that do not have our same strong standards could taint our medicine supply.”
The first sentence
is something you are supposed to take at face value. The second sentence is
deceptively broad: as in, yes, importing medicines from countries that do not
have our “same” standards could taint our medicine supply. Not
necessarily, but it could.
(more…)Tagged with: Katherine Eban
