Congressional Digest

Congressional Digest November 2003 No. 9 Vol. 82
Legislative Background

Importing Prescription Drugs

Balancing Affordability and Public Health

Legislative Background

Recent Action on Prescription Drug Imports

Congress has tried and failed in recent years to reach a consensus on a new prescription drug benefit under Medicare. In light of this stalemate, lawmakers have looked for other ways to increase the availability of lower-cost prescription drugs. Passage of the MEDS Act. In 2000, Congress passed the Medicine Equity and Drug Safety (MEDS) Act as part of the Fiscal Year 2001 Agriculture Appropriations bill. The Act amended the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to establish a five-year program that would allow pharmacists and drug wholesalers to import less costly prescription drugs from foreign suppliers. Pharmaceuticals imported under…

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