The American Pharmacists Association Writes Congress to Oppose Importation

March 24, 2017

On March 22, the American Pharmacists Association (APhA), which represents 64,000 pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, pharmacy students and other pharmacy professionals wrote a letter to Congress opposing plans to legalize importation of non-FDA approved drugs. These proposals, they wrote, are “in direct conflict with recent efforts by Congress and federal agencies to increase the integrity and security of the U.S. drug supply.”

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Former FDA Commissioners Warn About Drug Importation

March 22, 2017

The Washington Post reports that the four most recent FDA commissioners have warned Congress that American patients will suffer if they import drugs from other countries, citing fake, substandard and contaminated drugs as potential consequences.

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Op-Ed: Why Drug Importation Is Flawed Policy

March 20, 2017

Mike Leavitt | March 20, 2017 With the issue of prescription drug importation being debated on Capitol Hill again, mark me in the skeptical camp. As a matter of safety and practical policymaking, drug importation simply doesn’t work. It is not by happenstance that our country has the world’s safest drug supply. Counterfeit medicines are proliferating…

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Pew Trust Warns Senator Sanders that Drug Import Bill Could Compromise the Safety of the U.S. Drug Supply

March 14, 2017

On Tuesday, February 28, Allan Coukell, Senior Director of Health Programs for the Pew Charitable Trusts, wrote Senator Bernie Sanders to ask that he not undermine safety protections for medication with the Affordable and Safe Prescription Drug Importation Act.

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Death of Ottawa Teens Blamed on Counterfeit Percocet Made with Fentanyl

March 13, 2017

Investigators confirm that pills found near Chloe Kotval’s body were fake Percocet containing a lethal dose of fentanyl. She is the youngest Canadian to be killed by fentanyl-laced fake medication, but hardly the first. Chloe Kotval, a 14 year old Ottawa high school student died on February 14, 2017 after taking a counterfeit pill laced…

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Affordable Prescription Drug Options Already Exist in Your Town

March 10, 2017

Americans have been talking about saving money on medicine by importing drugs from Canada for years and circulating price comparison tables to prove their point. In the past few days, this graphic has been making the rounds; The Partnership for Safe Medicines staff wondered whether these prices were accurate, and so we checked them by…

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People with Severe Allergies Now Have an Affordable Alternative to the EpiPen

March 6, 2017

For years, if you suffered from severe allergies, EpiPen was the best-known option to prevent anaphylaxis. Mylan, the manufacturer of EpiPen, released a generic alternative in December 2016, however, there is an even more affordable option on the market. As reported by Consumer Reports, Adrenaclick had long been a cheaper alternative to the EpiPen, but…

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Nearly 170 Organizations Urge Congress to Protect Patients from Hazards of Drug Importation

February 28, 2017

Coalition Calls on Congress to Maintain Safe Access to Medicines For Immediate Release February 28, 2017 Washington, D.C. – The Partnership for Safe Medicines (PSM) today sent a letter signed by nearly 170 groups to all members of Congress urging them to continue protecting Americans and stand against efforts that would allow substandard and even dangerous…

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California Drug Counterfeiter Sentenced to 10 Years in Jail

February 24, 2017

David Beckford was one of 5 California residents charged in a scheme to produce and sell fake Xanax from bulk medication imported from China. A Northern California Federal Court has sentenced Oakland resident David Beckford to ten years in prison after his guilty plea on counterfeit drug, money laundering, and weapons charges, The Department of…

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NYC Couple Pleads Guilty to Conspiring to Illegally Distribute and Dispense Fake Cosmetic Injectable

February 22, 2017

Brooklyn, New York residents Bu Young Kim and Chan Hui Cho pleaded guilty in federal court to conspiring to dispense and administer cosmetic drugs and treatment without being a licensed medical professional, import of misbranded drugs and attempting to smuggle $79,986 from the United States to South Korea. According to the United States Department of…

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