CONTACTStaffCAREER OPPORTUNITIESADVERTISE WITH USPRIVACY POLICYPRIVACY PREFERENCESTERMS OF USELEGAL NOTICE
© 2024 Pride Publishing Inc.
All Rights reserved
All Rights reserved
By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Private Policy and Terms of Use.
Ignoring warnings from the Food and Drug Administration, Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich on Tuesday announced that his administration is launching a program within the next month that will help state residents purchase cheaper prescription drugs from Canada, the United Kingdom, and Ireland, The Washington Post reports. Price caps in those countries make prescriptions medications significantly cheaper than the prices charged in the United States. Some anti-HIV medications, for example, sell in other Western nations for less than half of the American price. The program will be the first in the nation that expands drug reimportation efforts beyond Canada; Illinois officials said they included Ireland and the United Kingdom in the program because of efforts by pharmaceutical companies to limit shipments to Canadian pharmacies that ship drugs to U.S. consumers. Four other states--Minnesota, New Hampshire, North Dakota, and Wisconsin--have established Web sites to help state residents buy drugs from Canadian pharmacies. The Illinois program, which is accessible through a Web site and a toll-free telephone number, will allow residents with a prescription from an Illinois doctor to purchase 100 of the most common prescription medications to treat illnesses and diseases. Medications that require refrigeration and drugs to treat pain are excluded. Illinois will contract with a Canadian pharmacy benefits manager to connect Illinois patients with more than 35 pharmacies and wholesalers. State inspectors will visit each of the participating pharmacies and wholesalers to ensure the quality and safety of the medications. "We have taken every possible step we could think of to convince the FDA, the Congress, and anyone and everyone who will listen that people across Illinois, and across our country, deserve access to safe and lower-cost prescription drugs," Blagovich said in a statement. "The federal government has failed to act. So it's time that we do." But William Hubbard, FDA associate commissioner for policy and planning, told the Post that the program "sounds like yet another expansion of an effort to import unapproved drugs from foreign countries that will be illegal under U.S. law and will raise serious concerns on the part of the FDA." Hubbard wouldn't comment on whether the FDA plans legal action against Illinois, but he said it may be possible that the agency would ask a federal judge to rule on the legality of the program.
Want more breaking equality news & trending entertainment stories?
Check out our NEW 24/7 streaming service: the Advocate Channel!
Download the Advocate Channel App for your mobile phone and your favorite streaming device!
From our Sponsors
Most Popular
Here Are Our 2024 Election Predictions. Will They Come True?
November 07 2023 1:46 PM
17 Celebs Who Are Out & Proud of Their Trans & Nonbinary Kids
November 30 2023 10:41 AM
Here Are the 15 Most LGBTQ-Friendly Cities in the U.S.
November 01 2023 5:09 PM
Which State Is the Queerest? These Are the States With the Most LGBTQ+ People
December 11 2023 10:00 AM
These 27 Senate Hearing Room Gay Sex Jokes Are Truly Exquisite
December 17 2023 3:33 PM
10 Cheeky and Homoerotic Photos From Bob Mizer's Nude Films
November 18 2023 10:05 PM
30 Steamy Photos of Folsom Street Fair 2023 Debauchery
October 15 2023 11:06 PM
42 Flaming Hot Photos From 2024's Australian Firefighters Calendar
November 10 2023 6:08 PM
These Are the 5 States With the Smallest Percentage of LGBTQ+ People
December 13 2023 9:15 AM
60 Burly Pics from Bearrison Street Fair 2022
October 08 2023 8:30 PM
Watch Now: Advocate Channel
Trending Stories & News
For more news and videos on advocatechannel.com, click here.
Trending Stories & News
For more news and videos on advocatechannel.com, click here.
Latest Stories
Neo-Nazis suspected of killing 72-year-old gay man after escaping from prison
March 25 2024 3:58 PM
'Fractured landscape:' Abortions in the U.S. are increasing, despite 'drastic' bans
March 25 2024 3:06 PM
Utah violated rights of trans woman inmate who performed surgery on herself, DOJ finds
March 25 2024 12:30 PM
We kiki with Jake Shears about Cabaret, Tammy Faye, Elton, and more
March 25 2024 9:52 AM
Prince William's aversion to spectacle created one — and might spawn a King Harry
March 22 2024 6:24 PM
Outrage after Oklahoma prosecutor declines charges in Nex Benedict bullying death
March 22 2024 5:21 PM
George Santos leaves Republican Party, will run for House seat as independent
March 22 2024 4:07 PM