Drug Companies punish Canada for selling drugs to sick Americans

[brainshrub]

"Eli Lilly has joined the list of U.S. drug makers limiting sales to Canadian pharmacies to try to prevent their drugs from being re-imported and sold to Americans."

http://www.cbc.ca/stories/2003/10/20/Consumers/internet_drug031020

<snip>

"Because of Canadian regulations and the Canada-U.S. exchange rate, prescription drugs often cost 50 per cent less in Canada than they do in the U.S."

[Soloflecks]

1. They won't be happy until

the entire world is paying through the nose to stay alive. FUCKERS!

[brainshrub]

2. Remember, they still make a heafty profit in Canada n/t

[brainshrub]

3. I mean "hefty". *doh*

[GainesT1958]

4. They're going to lose that battle...

By slowing shipments of their drugs to Canadian pharmacies, they risk losing patent protection in Canada as a retaliatory move--not a good thing for them.

Plus, they can't justify charging us twice what Canadians pay for the same drugs, nor charging us several times what patients in other countries pay, no matter how many ads they buy on the evening news. Why, because we have to "subsidize" the world's prescription needs? How long will THAT one hold water?:mad:

B-)

[prolesunited]

5. It's all about protecting profits

Rep. Bernie Sanders has a good Web page on this issue.
http://bernie.house.gov/prescriptions/profits.asp





"For the last year, the pharmaceutical industry has used scare tactics to try and stop real prescription drug legislation from passing in Congress. One of its most deceitful and shameless claims is that real reform will somehow stifle research and development and make their business unprofitable. However, as these figures show, the industry is pocketing the largest profit margin of any industry in the nation, with these profits far outweighing their spending on research and development. Make no mistake about it, there is a direct connection between the drug companies massive profits and Americans being charged the highest prices for prescription drugs in the world. It is my belief that Congress needs to stop working to protect the billions in drug company profits and start working to protect Americans from being ripped off on the price of their medications."

[LibertyorDeath]

6. Greed obsessed corporate fucks punish Canada for selling drugs to sick

Americans would be more accurate.

[madrchsod]

7. hey...where`s that

"free trade" we signed with canada and mexico? why can`t we buy things from canada or mexico????

[Nay]

9. Yeah, all these large companies don't mind shipping our jobs...

...out of the country, why can't we ship prescription drugs in for ourselves? Of course, I know the answer to that one, but gosh, this is so blatant that even right-wingers can get it.

[HEyHEY]

19. your post and the one above ..

Made me so mad when I read them, it's a point I already know but I get so mad when reminded of it...you know how some things are so blatant. But it doesn't matter the corps still get away with it. My bloods all stirred up now....grrrrrrr those fuckers!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[teryang]

8. Americans are getting screwed by big Pharm

...what till all the healthy people get older. Try paying 200 to 30,000 a month for drugs.

[reprobate]

10. People, people, stop complaining. This is The American Way!

No longer Power to the people.

Now Profit to the corporation.

That's the way it now works in the Corporate states of America.

[Zero Gravitas]

11. Corporate profits

and a handful of already very wealthy people getting even richer is FAR more important that average Americans getting (relativley) affordable medicine to these people. And why does the GOP always raise several times as much money as the Dems? Because these Coproate Pigs know who is on their side.

[lovedems]

12. Corporate greed in its finest

Making a profit is more important than healing or maintaining the sick. I had a friend who was in med. school and you WOULD believe the money these companies spend on wining and dining doctors to prescribe THEIR medicine. It was something else.

[ConcernedCanuk]

13. Hmmm - could this be a boon for CANADIAN drug companies ?

. . I mean, it would benefit Canadian companies to invest in research and Development, and instead of selling US prodiucts back to the US, just sell the US our OWN pharmacuticals ??

Sounds like another move that could backfire on the US

- ( they seem to be getting good at that -)

Canada will eventually find other markets for it's beef, lumber, steel, etc.

- so when the US really NEEDS something, geegollywhizbang ,

" so solly - all committed to other nations " ?

and maybe more people will retire to Canada, so the elderly that usually need more medication than younger peeps, can buy their meds at their local CANADIAN pharmacy , not to mention the added benefit of FREE Healthcare !!

"punishing" their closest neighbour and trade partner seems sorta Dumb

ohyah

- "DumbYa" is running ur country

Go figure !

[juajen]

24. I didn't know it was possible to "retire" to Canada

I thought you had to have a work skill that was needed in Canada. How would that work. Would medicare still be used by US retirees to Canada? I can't imagine that Canada would want our elderly using their national healthcare? Tell me, please. How would our social security dollars stack up against Canadian money?

[Samantha]

14. Dems could really use this info as an explosive campaign tool

Some time ago, someone slipped a rider onto a major piece of legislation (something big like Homeland Security, but it wasn't Homeland Security) protecting the manufacturer of the smallpox vaccine from lawsuits if a person who had been vaccinated developed serious side effects. It came out later it was Dick Army who had tacked it on. Dick Army leaked the fact he was doing Frist a favor. Frist has some connection with Eli Lilly, the manufacturer of the vaccine.

Fast forward to today -- Frist is now the Senate Majority Leader. The House and the Senate are negotiating the presciption drug benefit under the "modernization" of Medicare. If the American people could really hear someone like Dean or Kucinich zero in on the retaliation Canada is suffering as a result of the selling of lower-priced drugs to Americans, be made aware of the Lilly-Frist connection, be made further aware of the fact these are some of the biggest sponsers the Republicans have, drug companies, perhaps the point could be driven home to American voters these are the very people, the Republicans, who assist the drug companies in gouging Americans.

A study put out about two years ago said that while drug companies say they need to charge Americans extra to fund research, these same drug companies are paying more for advertising than they are research. The advertising should come out of those huge corporate profits, not the pockets of middle-class and impoverished Americans and the cost of the research should either be equally distributed among all countries or absorbed by the drug companies themselves.

We need the Dems to really focus on this issue and blast the Republicans for their hypocrisy.

[sweetladybug]

15. pills pills pills

who needs them any way, that would mean everyone would be well enough to get to the polls and we all know resident bush wouldn't have it any other way. everyone needs to take a prozac hahaha oh wait, who could afford that.

[ConcernedCanuk]

16. "take a prozac hahaha oh wait, who could afford that."

. . Up here in Canukville, if you're on Welfare, and a drug is prescribed,

Even Prozac is FREE !!

[Zhade]

17. This angers me.

I take three expensive medications a day - I'd love to pay half price! Sure, I have health insurance to defray the cost some, but what about when I lose that?

[LastLiberal in PalmSprings]

18. Cutting off the Canadian supply would be almost catastrophic

I have to take three different prescriptions which would cost more than $8,000 in stateside pharmacies. None of them have generic equivalents in the U.S., but Canada does for two, and has a lower price for the brand name one, which they send in the factory sealed package. Ordering from a Canadian pharmacy cuts my annual prescription cost to less than $2,500. This should be a MAJOR issue with elders in 2004, if the Dems would take the initiative.

[HEyHEY]

20. Now now everyone only Major US based companies are allowed

To make a profit. They can outsource to make cheaper products, but YOU can't "outsource" your consumer dollar..after all the term "free market" only applies to certain people. These fucks make the rules as they go....
What's worse is how many people will go along with it because they are told "it's in the interest of America" fuckers don't even get it.

I just hope Canada starts making their own....then they can shut these bastards down.

[Nottingham]

21. What Canada needs to do is Buy the drugs from Britain

Eli Lily is only hurting themselves

What is very obvious is that millions of Americans are going to Canada for their drugs to get cheaper

:bounce:

[HEyHEY]

22. But you don't need to be competetive in BUsh land!

Just call you friendly local fascist regime and tell them to make your competition illegal!

[coyote]

23. Why can Corporations buy cheap foreign labor...and I can´t buy cheap

foreign drugs?

Anyone? Bueller? Bueller?

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

25. Wonderful analogy. Link to Pharm Political Donations:

http://www.opensecrets.org/industries/contrib.asp?Ind=H04

See who is buying whom.