Murray,
Thanks for the information on CanadaRx site, and all the other great WEb
sties you/ve shared with us. Just about 2 weeks ago our local paper -The
Buffalo News ran a story about the high costs of prescription meds in the
US and the increasing numbers who are going to Canada for their
medications. From Buffalo, a short drive across the bridge can save
people a substantial amount of money, and for many without prescription
coverage,  make the difference between being able to afford their
medicines or having to do without. It didn't mention though that this
company was on the WEB.  I had saved the article - it's long, but here
are some interesting excerpts:

Health's High Price:
The High Cost of Prescription drugs puts many senior citizens on the edge
of poverty : as Congress wrangles over a solution, many are finding their
medications cheaper in Canada
BY Douglas Turner and Henry DAvis
April 16, 2000

..."Those who can least afford to pay for their drugs -- seniors with low
incomes -- often go without prescription coverage . . .
Faced with demand for expanding Medicare to cover drugs, Congress and
President Clinton are considering several proposals. Though the issue
will dominate this year's elections and reverberate through the halls of
the Capitol, enactment of a program this year is an open question.

Meanwhile, seniors aren't waiting.
Some skip treatments or hope for free samples from a doctor. Others run
up
huge credit card debts. Still others travel to Canada, where prices for
many therapies are lower...."

"Canadians can buy 250 tablets of the heart drug Lanoxin for $ 17.50, for
instance, while Americans pay up to $ 60, according to Rep. John LaFalce,
D-Town of Tonawanda."
"Some medications aren't less expensive. But ... many popular drugs do
offer significant savings in Canada, such as Lipitor for reducing
cholesterol. Many women make the trip for Tamoxifen, the breast cancer
therapy, at a fraction of its U.S. price...."

"We're seeing people every week from all over New York State and as far
away as Pennsylvania," said Dr. Michael Csanadi, a family physician in
Fort
Erie who helps Americans seeking relief from high drug costs.
Under Canadian law, only Canadian prescriptions can be filled. But
Americans can easily make appointments with doctors like Csanadi, who,
for
a nominal office visit fee, reviews an individual's medical status and
countersigns an American prescription.. ."

"For the most part, Canadian prices are lower because they are regulated
by
the provincial government and made even more attractive these days by the
favorable exchange rate."
The trips to Canada have caught the attention of drugmakers."

MY NOTE: Canadian friends: I remind you the following is a quote from the
newspaper article - and is not my opinion (I don't understand the
connection Ryan is trying to make). But I'd be very interested in hearing
your responses to his statement:

"An ad campaign recently launched in many border states tries to convince
Americans that price controls are a bad idea. Instead, pharmaceutical
companies support plans in Congress to subsidize drug benefits obtained
through private insurance.
Price controls on drugs would be accompanied by waits for medical
services,
one of the chief complaints of Canada's cherished health system of
nationalized insurance and government-set spending limits, said Tim Ryan,
executive director of Citizens for Better Medicare, the lobbying
coalition
financed by drugmakers that is behind the ad campaign."

"If we accept price controls, we should be prepared to accept the
Canadian-style consequences," he said."

NOTE: DIFFERING OPINIONS ABOUT WHY PRESCRIPTION DRUG COSTS ARE HIGHER IN
THE US:

"The U.S. drug industry spends about 20 percent of revenues on research
and
development, and almost half of all new medicines in the world are
discovered by U.S. companies, according to the Pharmaceutical Research
and
Manufacturers of America."

"But the industry also spends substantial amounts on nonmedical expenses.
For instance, the drugmakers in 1999 spent more than $ 1.48 billion on
advertising to consumers and $ 6.2 billion on marketing to physicians,
said
consultants Scott-Levin.

"The marketing is partly responsible for an explosion in prescription
drug
use and spending, which increased by 84 percent from 1993 to 1998, mainly
the result of rising retail prices, according to a study released last
year
by the National Institute for Health Care Management, a group supported
by
health insurers and the government..."

Any comments - from either side of the border?
Linda