TELECOM Digest OnLine - Sorted: Canada Not Trying to Kill Web Drugstores, PM Says

Canada Not Trying to Kill Web Drugstores, PM Says

Lisa Minter (lisa_minter2001@yahoo.com)
Sat, 13 Nov 2004 16:20:03 EST

VANCOUVER, British Columbia (Reuters) - Prime Minister Paul Martin
denied on Friday that Canada was trying to drive Internet pharmacies
out of business, despite Ottawa's recent complaints over drug sales to
the United States.

Martin also denied the warnings were linked to any effort to improve
relations with President Bush, who has objected to U.S. states and
cities attempting to use Canada as a source of less expensive
medicines.

"The two are entirely unrelated," Martin told reporters in Vancouver.

Federal Health Minister Ujjal Dosanjh warned in a speech at Harvard
University on Wednesday that Canada cannot act as America's
"drugstore." Web pharmacies sell about $600 million in prescription
drugs to U.S. customers annually.

Dosanjh also complained about prescription countersigning, in which
Canadian doctors or third-party pharmacists sign off on prescriptions
for U.S. patients they have not seen in person.

The law requires a Canadian doctor approve prescriptions, and the
Internet pharmacies complained Dosanjh will drive them out of business
if he blocks doctors from approving mail-order requests.

"Minister Dosanjh's comments were directed at the medical fraternity,
and simply said to the medical fraternity these are your own rules,"
Martin said.

Physician groups in several provinces prohibit the practice of
countersigning, which can provide doctors with a lucrative source of
income.

Canadian prescription drug prices are capped at the average shelf
price in major industrialized nations, and are usually less than in
the United States where the prices are unregulated.

*** FAIR USE NOTICE. This message contains copyrighted material the
use of which has not been specifically authorized by the copyright
owner. This Internet discussion group is making it available without
profit to group members who have expressed a prior interest in
receiving the included information in their efforts to advance the
understanding of literary, educational, political, and economic
issues, for non-profit research and educational purposes only. I
believe that this constitutes a 'fair use' of the copyrighted material
as provided for in section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Law. If you wish
to use this copyrighted material for purposes of your own that go
beyond 'fair use,' you must obtain permission from the copyright
owner, in this instance Reuters News Service.

For more information go to:
http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml

Post Followup Article Use your browser's quoting feature to quote article into reply
Go to Next message: Lisa Minter: "Livewire: Web Sites Help Ease Grind of Daily Commute"
Go to Previous message: TELECOM Digest Editor: "Use Comcast Cable Modem? Go to Jail! Judy Sammels's Experience"
TELECOM Digest: Home Page