Expect withdrawal
Health Care Op-Ed
By: Sally C. Pipes
3.24.2004
Seattle Times, March 25, 2004
Letter to EditorI really enjoyed Collin Levey's "Borderline hysteria over Canadian drugs" (guest column, March 18), and was flattered to see that she cited some of my research. As Levey notes, Canadians often "stream south" when they need treatments for serious ailments. As a Canadian myself, I can tell you Levey is absolutely correct. Today, many Canadians travel south for life-enhancing drugs that are simply unavailable in Canada. Some are available in one province but not another. Examples include Embrel and Remicade for arthritis, Retuxin for AIDS, and Glucophage 2 for diabetes. From 1999 to 2001, of the 100 drugs that came on the market in the U.S., only 43 made it on to the Canadian formulary. Unfortunately, as more and more Americans illegally buy drugs from Canada, U.S. companies — such as Pfizer, Lilly and GlaxoSmithKline — are beginning to limit their Canadian shipments. Sadly, this means fewer advanced drugs for Canadians. Sally C. Pipes
President and CEO
Pacific Research Institute
San Francisco
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