Thursday, September 21, 2006
The folly of "reimporting" drugs
In a recent Washington Post poll, two-thirds of those participating stated that drug "reimportation" from Canada should be legal. Such thinking reveals the depth of economic ignorance in this country. The "reimportation" schemes being bandied about in Congress and in various think tanks are an affront to the laws of supply and demand. Thus, they are destined to fail.
Canadian consumers pay lower prices for prescription drugs because Canada's government-run health care system employs price controls. When they introduce drugs into the Canadian market, U.S. drug companies can charge just enough to cover manufacturing costs. Most of the burden of paying for research, development, and distribution falls on American consumers.
Those people who think that they're doing an end-around on the drug companies by running to Canada for prescriptions are only deluding themselves. Every American consumer who has purchased prescription drugs has already helped to subsidize those low prices.
If a scheme is implemented whereby Canadian drugs are reintroduced into the United States at cheaper prices, pharmaceutical companies will have no choice but to begin withholding drugs from the Canadian market. American consumers may have a blissful few months in which they enjoy the spoils of Canadian socialism. However, those cheap prices won't last very long as drug companies restrict the shipment of drugs northward until Canada allows prices to rise to more sensible levels.
Canadian consumers pay lower prices for prescription drugs because Canada's government-run health care system employs price controls. When they introduce drugs into the Canadian market, U.S. drug companies can charge just enough to cover manufacturing costs. Most of the burden of paying for research, development, and distribution falls on American consumers.
Those people who think that they're doing an end-around on the drug companies by running to Canada for prescriptions are only deluding themselves. Every American consumer who has purchased prescription drugs has already helped to subsidize those low prices.
If a scheme is implemented whereby Canadian drugs are reintroduced into the United States at cheaper prices, pharmaceutical companies will have no choice but to begin withholding drugs from the Canadian market. American consumers may have a blissful few months in which they enjoy the spoils of Canadian socialism. However, those cheap prices won't last very long as drug companies restrict the shipment of drugs northward until Canada allows prices to rise to more sensible levels.
# posted by Joltin' Django @ Thursday, September 21, 2006 
