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Americans warm to prescription drug prices in the Great White North

By: T. Stevens,

It’s not the just the temperatures that are on-average lower in Canada; so are the prices of prescription drugs - often 40-50% lower, and some times as much as 80% lower.

With value like that to be had, it was only a matter of time before savvy American consumers along with a few enterprising Canadian neighbors, would find a way to import those lower priced prescriptions to the US safely and conveniently.

Of course, trade between the United States and Canada is nothing new. Canada is America’s largest trading partner. More goods and services pass between the US and Canada than any other country, and over two million jobs in each country are created as a result. The United States is the largest foreign investor in Canada, and for Canadians the most popular country to invest in outside Canada is the United States.

Now one of the fastest growing trade areas is prescription medications. Why? Very simply: price. The prices of the exact same medications that people purchase in the United States are significantly lower in Canada.

Why are these same drugs so much cheaper in Canada? First, Canada has a socialized health insurance program. Though individuals and businesses do pay premiums, the government still guarantees that all Canadians are covered regardless of income. As such, the government has a very real interest in keeping the cost of health care down. One of the ways they do that is by controlling the price of prescription drugs.

The U.S. government does not “get involved” in controlling prescription medication costs. So, the large pharmaceutical companies can charge what ever the market will bear. So if you, as an American, need their medication, you’ll pay a lot more for it.

Second, the value of the Canadian Dollar has consistently been lower than the US dollar. On average, over the last five years, the American Dollar could purchase 1.52 Canadian dollars, or about 35% more.

Thanks to these two factors, the price of medications in Canada can be as much as 80% lower than in the United States. Of course a bargain like that cannot be kept secret. Eventually some enterprising Canadian pharmacies and some cost conscious American consumers started “talking” over the internet. Thanks to them, the rules of the game have changed – and today millions of dollars every day are being saved by Americans buying their prescriptions online and having them delivered by mail..

As one might imagine, the big manufactures are not too excited about this phenomenon. In fact, one such company, Glaxo Pharmaceuticals, threatened to stop supplying medications to internet pharmacies in Canada all together. To this point the combined efforts of consumer and pharmacy groups, and various state and provincial governments, and even Attorneys General, on both sides of the border have kept the supply of drugs moving. And if the laws regarding this cross border enterprise are not very clear, the message certainly is: Americans are demanding more affordable health care, and if their government won’t deliver it too them they’ll have it shipped in from Canada.

And what about those not-very-clear laws? Though the debate is not completely over in Washington, there has been significant progress. Recently the U.S.Senate introduced, and overwhelmingly passed, a bill allowing Americans to buy prescription medications from Canada. The FDA countered with a “safety” concern; however Senator Byron Dorgan (D-ND) quickly countered, stating the Canadian drug supply chain was virtually identical to the one in this country. "It's virtually impossible to make a safety issue out of the proposal,” he said.

Aside from the huge savings accrued by shopping online from Canada, the simple convenience of having one’s prescriptions to one’s door is very attractive to many Americans. Even if there were no discount in price it is likely that many American consumers would avail themselves of the services of the internet pharmacies simply to avoid the hassles of, parking and waiting in line at their local pharmacy.

If you have decided to try ordering your prescriptions from Canada, here are a few things you should keep in mind:

1. Make sure the Canadian pharmacy requires a prescription from your doctor. If they do not it is not a legitimate registered pharmacy
2. Your account with a given Canadian pharmacy will take some time to establish, so make sure you only have to do it once.
3. Find a company that has an active customer service line so you can easily phone if you have any questions.
4. Look for helpful options like automatic renewal.
5. Look for a site that is “useable.” A site that doesn’t “work” well is like a dirty pharmacy. Stay away.
6. Look for an online pharmacy that dispenses from a co-op of pharmacies rather than a single pharmacy. This reduces your chance of getting an “out of stock” notice. This is an important advantage for you as a consumer to assure that your meds will always be available and to you on time. So far the only company we’ve found that uses a pharmacy co-op (and offers guaranteed shipping times) is www.prescripnet.com

Buying prescription from Canada has not only saved many Americans enormously on out-of-pocket expenses, it has also likely saved a lot of lives. One of the most frequent reasons that patients cite for non-compliance with drug regimens, is simply that they cannot afford all the drugs they are prescribed. With typical saving of around 50% available just a click or a phone call away, many American patients can now afford to take all the drugs they are prescribed.