Health minister aims to protect domestic supplies

OTTAWA - Canada will draw up legislation giving it the right to ban the bulk sale of prescription drugs and other medicines to the United States when necessary to protect domestic supplies, Health Minister Ujjal Dosanjh said Wednesday.

He said Ottawa must be able to block plans by some U.S. states to make bulk purchases of medicines from Canada, where prices are generally lower because of government-imposed limits on what pharmaceutical companies can charge for their drugs.

The ban "would come into effect from time to time whenever there is an anticipated shortage of prescription drugs or other needed drugs. It wouldn't be a permanent ban,'' Dosanjh told reporters after a meeting of cabinet.

``Canada cannot be the drugstore for the United States of America. 280 million people can't expect us to supply drugs to them ... (at) controlled prices within our pricing regime,'' he said. Canada's population is around 32 million.

Dosanjh also said Ottawa would stop the current practice of Canadian Internet pharmacies selling cheap medicines to Americans who do not have an established relationship with a doctor in Canada.

``In light of potential American legislation legalizing the bulk import of Canadian prescription and other medications, our priority must be the health and safety of all Canadians and the strength of our health care system,'' he said.

Pharmaceutical companies have threatened to halt shipments to Canada if the drugs are transported back to the United States and sold at levels that undercut U.S. prices.

Dosanjh said Ottawa would also set up a drug monitoring network to identify where Canadian prescription medicines were going and to warn of possible shortages.

The minority Liberal government will formally unveil the draft legislation once Parliament resumes work Sept. 26.

Dosanjh, who condemns as immoral the practice of Internet pharmacies sending drugs to Americans without then consulting Canadian doctors, conceded the new rules would harm the profitable Web-based drug trade.

``We will ... require the establishment and existence of a doctor-patient relationship before cross-border prescription sales could take place,'' he said.

David MacKay, a consultant for the Internet pharmacies, said the trade supported a ban on bulk sales since it was clear the Canada could not supply all U.S. needs.

But he expressed dismay over the planned clampdown on sales to U.S. patients without Canadian doctors, saying the pharmacies only sent drugs to Americans after seeing their medical records.

``There has already been a primacy care physician involved in the United States, so this patient has already been examined. How many doctors do you need in this process?''