Proponents of this bill will state that since the drugs were made in the US to begin with that this is little cause for concern. The gaping hole in their logic is there is absolutely no guarantee that the drugs coming back into the US were actually made in the US. What is to stop a pharmaceutical seller from purchasing their drugs from a country like India? Granted that the Canadian government's price ceiling on prescription drugs drives down the cost of drugs from the US, but prescription drugs from various other countries (i.e. India) are a fraction of this regulated price. There have already been documented instances where companies have claimed to sell prescription drugs from the US or Canada and they were actually manufactured in other countries. If this bill were to be adopted, the US would quickly digress from a place where consumers can have confidence in the drugs they purchase to a state of Caveat Emptor. .
Another very important point is the impact that this measure would have on the market based economy in the U.S. Quite simply, the Canadian government and its affiliates would now have the power to set and control prices for all prescription drugs that are allowed to be re-imported. If this law indeed passes, the vast majority of the population will begin purchasing their prescriptions through this new avenue. This will leave drug companies with no choice but to lower their prices to compete with the influx of re-imported drugs. Profitability issues withstanding, the very principal that a foreign government will essentially set prices for drugs that the U.S. manufactures is beyond ludicrous. .
At this juncture, I would like to use our socialist allies across the Atlantic as a perfect example of what happens when the government, in it's infinite wisdom, institutes price controls on prescription drugs. One does not have to think back too far to remember the day when Europe was the medicine chest of the world.