Rick Allen: “2 years ago, in October of 1998, I released in my district the first study comparing the prices of prescription drugs in…”

“2 years ago, in October of 1998, I released in my district the first study comparing the prices of prescription drugs in the United States to prices in Mexico and Canada. In that study we found that Mainers pay 72 percent more than Canadians and 102 percent more than Mexicans for the same drugs from the same U.S. manufacturers in the same quantities. For 2 years, the Democrats here have been fighting for a prescription drug benefit, fighting for a discount for seniors. But today I rise to ask for support for legislation that would allow pharmacists to buy prescription drugs in other countries and bring them and sell them here. That would mean a substantial discount for our seniors. We need to reduce prescription drug prices for seniors in this country. Seniors cannot wait until the next Congress to get relief from price gouging by the pharmaceutical industry. I urge my Republican colleagues to act now.”