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posted by Fnord666 on Tuesday August 13 2019, @10:25AM   Printer-friendly
from the don't-do-drugs-eh dept.

Arthur T Knackerbracket has found the following story:

Canadians are in a kerfuffle over the Trump administration's preliminary plan to allow Americans to import lower-cost prescription medications from Canada.

The plan was announced July 31 and is part of the administration's long-sought effort to drag down the US's skyrocketing drug prices. But it's a long way from being a reality. Even if the plan does pan out, it will likely be years before regulators review, approve, and scale up efforts to import drugs.

Still, Canadians are infuriated by the idea and already brainstorming ways to toss it down the garburator, according to a report by health-news outlet STAT. Many fear that American importation would exacerbate current drug shortages in Canada.

"You are coming as Americans to poach our drug supply, and I don't have any polite words for that," Amir Attaran of the University of Ottawa told STAT. Prof. Attaran went on to refer to the plan as "deplorable" and "atrociously unethical." "Our drugs are not for you, period."

[...] On Monday, August 12, Canada's Minister of Health Ginette Petitpas Taylor was set to meet with pharmacists, patients, and industry officials to discuss a response to the US plan, according to STAT. Petitpas Taylor has pledged to "ensure there are no adverse effects to the supply or cost of prescription drugs in Canada."

In order to protect Canadians, some advocates and policy experts suggested that Canada could begin controlling the export of pharmaceuticals, pass new laws simply banning exporting drugs meant for Canadians, or impose new tariffs.

-- submitted from IRC


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  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday August 14 2019, @02:23AM (10 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday August 14 2019, @02:23AM (#879932)

    That URL is dishonest for what we are discussing. The purpose of the page that you listed is to alert doctors to alternative options that are still available. If you click into any one of those items, the Available Products provides information on how to continue treatment based on what is still available from different quantity sizes, pill sizes, manufacturers, or alternate treatment options. This is far different from "my treatment cannot continue because of supply shortages." This page actually makes it easier to continue treatment when a specific SKU becomes unavailable.

  • (Score: 2) by Gaaark on Wednesday August 14 2019, @12:00PM (9 children)

    by Gaaark (41) on Wednesday August 14 2019, @12:00PM (#880096) Journal

    https://www.fda.gov/regulatory-information/food-and-drug-administration-safety-and-innovation-act-fdasia/fact-sheet-drug-products-shortage-united-states [fda.gov]

    "Shortages of drugs and biologics pose a significant public health threat, delaying, and in some cases even denying, critically needed care for patients. Preventing drug shortages remains a top priority for FDA."

    --
    --- Please remind me if I haven't been civil to you: I'm channeling MDC. ---Gaaark 2.0 ---
    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday August 16 2019, @10:54PM (8 children)

      by Anonymous Coward on Friday August 16 2019, @10:54PM (#881333)

      You just stated a fact without context. That is not how you compare things.

      Now what is the rate of treatments *without substitutes* in the United States, and the rate of treatments without substitutes in Canada? Without this, we only have speculation.

      • (Score: 2) by Gaaark on Saturday August 17 2019, @01:23AM (7 children)

        by Gaaark (41) on Saturday August 17 2019, @01:23AM (#881377) Journal

        "Why was this modded Troll? The United States does not have drug shortages. "
        https://soylentnews.org/politics/comments.pl?noupdate=1&sid=33086&page=1&cid=879605#commentwrap [soylentnews.org]

        I showed you it DOES have shortages.

        Not sure why you can't get this simple stuff!....oh, right. The American education system.

        Sorry dude. I should have made it all more basic and SPELLED it out for you. Here we go:

        YOU IS DUMB!

        --
        --- Please remind me if I haven't been civil to you: I'm channeling MDC. ---Gaaark 2.0 ---
        • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday August 17 2019, @01:25AM (6 children)

          by Anonymous Coward on Saturday August 17 2019, @01:25AM (#881378)

          Without numbers for comparison, your words are meaningless. Did your education system not teach fractions?

          • (Score: 2) by Gaaark on Saturday August 17 2019, @02:23AM (5 children)

            by Gaaark (41) on Saturday August 17 2019, @02:23AM (#881393) Journal

            You said America has NO shortages.
            0% shortages.

            I showed it was NOT 0%

            Do any fractions you want.

            --
            --- Please remind me if I haven't been civil to you: I'm channeling MDC. ---Gaaark 2.0 ---
            • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday August 17 2019, @03:19AM (4 children)

              by Anonymous Coward on Saturday August 17 2019, @03:19AM (#881415)

              I will translate colloquial speech into literal speech since you apparently need it:

              There is no long lasting drug shortage crises worthy of nation wide news coverage in the United States because it is market based. Where there are shortages of specific stock (a specification of size of medication and quantity of medication), the FDA publishes alternatives so that people can resume treatment under different SKUs, types of medicines, or forms of treatment. Treatment mitigated in this fashion continues, so SKU shortages should not be conflated with failure to provide treatment. No one has made drug shortages in the US a political issue because it is very well managed when compared to the price controlled markets that socialists want us to move to.

              People complain of verbosity if I always express this level of detail.

              • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday August 17 2019, @03:39AM

                by Anonymous Coward on Saturday August 17 2019, @03:39AM (#881424)

                "No one has made" is not literal enough. "No one of any significance has made" is.

              • (Score: 2) by Gaaark on Saturday August 17 2019, @02:06PM (2 children)

                by Gaaark (41) on Saturday August 17 2019, @02:06PM (#881525) Journal

                Does the US have drug shortages?

                You said NO.

                The FDA says yes.

                You said 0%

                The FDA says NOT 0%

                NOW you say "There is no long lasting drug shortage"
                Sooooo, not 0%?

                Thank you for confirmation: there ARE shortages in the US. That's all I was talking about.

                --
                --- Please remind me if I haven't been civil to you: I'm channeling MDC. ---Gaaark 2.0 ---
                • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday August 17 2019, @09:13PM (1 child)

                  by Anonymous Coward on Saturday August 17 2019, @09:13PM (#881572)

                  You might want to look up what colloquial speech is. It will probably save you time in the future.

                  We are not lawyers.

                  • (Score: 2) by Gaaark on Sunday August 18 2019, @12:33AM

                    by Gaaark (41) on Sunday August 18 2019, @12:33AM (#881614) Journal

                    Nor debaters.

                    --
                    --- Please remind me if I haven't been civil to you: I'm channeling MDC. ---Gaaark 2.0 ---