Illinois prescription plan targets Ireland

But one leading Irish pharmaceutical organization has warned that the proposal would be dangerous for patients in Ireland who could find themselves unable to obtain their own medications at pharmacies.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration opposes the initiative, calling such drug purchasing of medications outside the United States “unsafe.”
However, Blagojevich, a Democrat, is undaunted.
“The federal government has failed to act, so it’s time we do,” said Blagojevich, referring to the sometimes exorbitant prices Americans pay for drugs.
Illinois, like all states and some local jurisdictions, helps pay for the prescription drugs of many of its retired and poor citizens, as well as those of state employees.
Participating pharmacies would be inspected by Illinois state officials, the governor’s office said.
The program, which it’s expected will be operational later this month, would allow Illinois residents using a Web site or toll-free phone number to purchase about 100 products the state has determined can be safely shipped from outside the United States.
The state will not itself make any drug purchases, as has been proposed in other states. But residents will have to enroll and submit a prescription with an in-state mailing residence in order to participate.
The governor’s office estimates that state residents could buy drugs at prices up to 50 percent lower than in the U.S.
“Our pharmacies would simply be overrun; this scheme is simply not pragmatic,” said Anne Nolan, the chief executive of the Irish Pharmaceutical Healthcare Association.
“We’d be very concerned that [there be] a sudden demand from millions — tens of millions of people — who might want to purchase here, leaving patients in the Irish market in need,” she said.
Nolan noted also the differences in the actual medications and labeling differences between the Irish market and the U.S.
“It’s often very different, and I don’t really know how they could anticipate the needs in ordering medications which sometimes takes three to six months to fulfill orders initially placed,” she added.
A spokesperson for another group, the Irish Pharmaceutical Union, said: “The sale of prescription medicines over the Internet is illegal in Ireland and the IPU supports this law, which is very much in the interests of patient care.”
The IPU’s Olive Stephens added: “The personal intervention by a pharmacist who knows the patient’s medication history is critical to ensure the effective use of medicines and ultimately to guarantee patient safety.”
Stephens said that the Illinois governor’s move was “particularly ironic given the Irish government’s policy, which is driving pharmacy in this country down the U.S. route rather than maintaining the model of pharmacy that prevails throughout the EU.”
Five other states, the District of Columbia and several cities offer programs to help residents or employees purchase drugs from pharmacies in Canada, where prices are generally lower than in the U.S.