Can a sufficient quantity of prescription drugs be safely imported from Canada to help reduce costs for state taxpayers and people with low and moderate incomes? October 2003 |  |
The National Symposium on Drug Importation took place in Chicago on October 23, 2003. Eight speakers from Canada and the United States presented every side of the debate over the course of a half-day program. Their presentations were transcribed and are presented in this booklet. Drug importation is getting national attention. During the week of the symposium, the Washington Post ran a front-page investigative series on the subject. The first article in the series was titled "U.S. Prescription Drug System Under Attack," and began with the following warning:
The four experts on drug importation from leading think tanks who agreed to come to Chicago to speak were Stephen Entin, president of the Institute for Research on the Economics of Taxation; Robert Goldberg, a senior fellow with the Manhattan Institute; John R. Graham, director of health and pharmaceutical policy research at the Fraser Institute in Vancouver, Canada; and Grace-Marie Turner, president of the Galen Institute. Also invited were 26 people from government and leading business groups, including 12 from Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich's office. Four of them said yes: Sean Heather, executive director of Congressional public affairs for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce; Senator Chris Lauzen, who represents the 25th Senate District in Illinois; David Miller, president of the Illinois Biotechnology Industry Organization; and Senator Steve Rauschenberger, who represents Illinois' 22nd Senate District. Approximately 80 people attended the symposium over the course of the day, including state legislators, pharmacists, small business owners, trade association lobbyists, the president of a drug importation business, and at least one member of Gov. Blagojevich's staff. Lively question and answer sessions followed each of three panels. |
