by Gabriel Levitt, Vice President, PharmacyChecker.com and Margaret Rode, PharmacyChecker.com | Jun 24, 2010 | Drug Importation
At the beginning of the 21st century, what started out as a trickle of American seniors buying drugs in Canada in order to save money, turned into millions of Americans over the past decade buying their drugs from Canadian and other international pharmacies. At that time, the demand was largely due to the fact that Medicare did not include a drug benefit, and tens of millions of seniors had to pay entirely out-of-pocket for their prescriptions drugs. Not only has this industry helped millions of Americans afford prescription drugs and created public awareness about international drug price disparities, but it has affected U.S. healthcare policy, leading to greater health coverage. (more…)
Tagged with: Canadian pharmacies, Dorgan, Drug Prices, Healthcare Reform, international pharmacies, Medicare, Medicare Drug Plans, Online Pharmacies, policy, seniors, Snowe
by Gabriel Levitt, Vice President, PharmacyChecker.com and Margaret Rode, PharmacyChecker.com | Jun 11, 2010 | Medicare Drug Plans
It has reached mid-June and the first of an estimated 4 million health reform rebate checks will be sent out this week. These checks will go to Medicare enrollees who have already reached the Medicare drug plan coverage gap, known as the “doughnut hole,” and subsequent checks will be mailed out 45 days after other Medicare enrollees hit the hole. According to Medicare.gov, eligible recipients who reach the “doughnut hole” this year will receive this one-time rebate check to offer some immediate relief.
Our previous post noted that compared to the $3,610 gap, $250 doesn’t seem like a lot of money. In fact it is only one-fourteenth of the total cost seniors will have to pay to get out of that hole and back into government subsidized prescription drug territory. This realization is discouraging in itself, but added to the fact that drug companies are boosting their prices higher than ever, seniors are faced with diluted savings that make little to no impact on their financial access to necessary prescription drugs.
The $250 check some seniors will receive this week, and others throughout the year, is welcome relief, but until pharmaceutical manufacturer’s stop taking advantage of consumers in need by jacking drug prices, prescription abandonment, prescription non-adherence, and unavoidable debt, will undoubtedly continue to grow.
Tagged with: Drug Prices, Healthcare Reform, pharmaceutical companies, prescription abandonment, seniors
by Gabriel Levitt, President, PharmacyChecker.com and Prescription Justice | Jun 2, 2010 | Politics
Senator Byron Dorgan (D-SD), who is leaving congress at the end of this term, continues to stand up to the pharmaceutical industry and on behalf of American consumers, as he is once again trying to push forward legislation that legalizes drug importation in a manner that could make prescription medication more affordable. In December of 2009, Dorgan introduced an amendment to H.R. 3590: Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to legalize drug importation, which received 51 yeas and 48 nays, falling short of the 60 votes needed for passage. Now Dorgan plans to introduce his legislation as an amendment to the food safety bill, which is sponsored by John Dingell (D-Mich). Dingell, however, is an adamant opponent to drug importation and is against attaching the amendment to his bill. Read the details in The Hill.
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Tagged with: Dorgan, Drug Prices, Healthcare Reform, Online Pharmacies, personal drug importation, pharmaceutical companies, phrma, policy
