February 28, 2017
The Honorable Bernard ‘Bernie’ Sanders
332 Dirksen Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
Dear Senators Sanders:
On behalf of the millions of members and supporters of the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare, I write to endorse your legislation introduced with Senators Booker and Casey, the Affordable and Safe Prescription Drug Importation Act of 2017.
Among other things your proposed legislation:
- permits wholesalers, licensed pharmacists and individuals to import drugs from Canada;
- creates a certification process for Canadian wholesalers and licensed pharmacists who will be allowed to sell drugs to US buyers; and
- allows the Secretary of the Department of Health & Human Services to approve laboratories to conduct random testing of prescription drugs to test their authenticity.
Research has shown that Americans frequently pay twice as much for the same drug as consumers in other countries do. For example, a 2015 Bloomberg analysis showed that Merck’s diabetes pill Januvia cost more than double in the US than in Canada. The provisions in your legislation would allow Americans to pay the same low costs for drugs as Canadians. The National Committee enthusiastically supports the Affordable and Safe Prescription Drug Importation Act because it is a common sense way to help seniors with high drug costs. Thank you for your leadership on this vital issue.
Sincerely,
Max Richtman
President and CEO