Prescription Drugs In America

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In America today, there is a public and political outcry for the overhaul of our Healthcare system. Of the many notable problems, the overwhelming cost of prescription drugs in America seems to be of the highest importance, second only to the increasing cost of health insurance. However, with every proposed solution, there arises a series of major concerns for the big pharmaceutical companies in America. Central to the interests of the aforementioned drug companies is their national trade group known as the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, or more commonly PhRMA, which is one of the largest and most influential lobbying organizations in Washington. Of their many concerns, the importation of prescription drugs from outside…show more content…
The World Health Organization has said that up to 10 percent of medicines available globally are counterfeits, posing a serious health hazard. In addition, the Center for Medicines in the Public Interest estimated that counterfeit drug sales will reach $75 billion globally in 2010, an increase of more than 90 percent from 2005. And, the problem isn’t limited to developing countries either; signs of the growing problem of phony prescription drugs can be seen in America as well. According to Customs and Border Protection officials, total seizures of counterfeit imports coming into the U.S. rose by 22 percent during the first half of fiscal 2007 alone. Also at the center of the issue, fraudulent online pharmacies are selling potentially substandard and fake medicines to unknowing American consumers at an alarming rate. A recent report by the Partnership for Prescription Assistance, a PhRMA subsidiary, suggests that only a tiny fraction of the online businesses possessed the certification they claimed and that two-fifths of spam emails offering prescription drugs from Internet pharmacies are from China, a country with no specific regulatory agency for prescription…show more content…
In the past few years, the industry has mounted an effective, organized campaign against the legalized importation of drugs from Canada. "America's big drug companies are intensifying their lobbying efforts to change the Canadian health-care system and eliminate subsidized prescription drug prices enjoyed by Canadians," CanWest News Service reported on June 9, 2003. A prescription drug industry spokesman in Washington confirmed to CanWest News Service that information contained in confidential industry documents is accurate, and that $1 million U.S. is being added to the already heavily funded drug lobby against the Canadian system. PhRMA was the leading drug industry trade group behind the increased lobbying and public relations campaign in Canada. PhRMA was also independently spending $450,000 to target the booming Canadian internet pharmacy industry, which has been providing Americans with prescription drugs at lower prices than in the United
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