Nevada Reimportation Program Operating
The four Canadian online pharmacies licensed to sell prescription drugs to Nevada residents under a new state program each received an average of 30 telephone calls daily in the first month, and about one-third of the calls resulted in purchases, the Las Vegas Sun reports (Hansel, Las Vegas Sun, 6/6).
Under the program, which was established under a state law enacted last year, Canadian pharmacists licensed by the Nevada State Board of Pharmacy can mail to state residents prescription drugs that appear in the Orange Book and HC-DPD, which list medications approved in the U.S. and Canada, respectively. Prescription drugs sold under the program must meet the manufacturing requirements of FDA and the Therapeutic Products Directorate of Health Canada; have a dosage that appears in the Orange Book and HC-DPD; and come from the onsite inventory systems of online Canadian pharmacies.
In addition, Canadian pharmacists cannot mail prescription drugs in liquid, injectable or intravenous forms or medications that require refrigeration or other special handling during shipment. The state pharmacy board has inspected and approved four Canadian online pharmacies to participate in the program, and a Web site established by the state includes links to those pharmacies (California Healthline, 5/8).
The Web site has received about 100,000 hits in the past month (Las Vegas Sun, 6/6).
"U.S. drug manufacturers have few, if any, reasons to control medication prices in this country," but the Nevada program that allows state residents to purchase prescription drugs from Canadian pharmacies might prompt such action, a Las Vegas Sun editorial states. "In the month since Nevadans could legally mail-order prescription drugs from Canadian pharmacies, hundreds of orders have been placed, and Canadian druggists are reaching out to not only seniors but also other groups that need medicines," the editorial states.
According to the editorial, pharmaceutical companies might "find reasons" to reduce prescription drug prices "if enough Americans -- as individuals and business owners -- show they are sick of paying high prices for their medications and seek lower-cost alternatives elsewhere" (Las Vegas Sun, 6/8).