Steve Buyer: “there are some concerns that have been raised here by the DEA. They sent a letter to the gentleman from Louisiana…”

“there are some concerns that have been raised here by the DEA. They sent a letter to the gentleman from Louisiana (Chairman Tauzin) and the ranking member, the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Dingell), dated July 11, 2001, which I will refer to and have placed in the record. When you look at the actual language, two of the concerns that they raise in the debate here today is this issue of appearance. Under the present law, the FDA can stop drugs at the border if they appear not to be approved. That is sensible and workable. But the new Gutknecht amendment shifts the burden. The Gutknecht amendment says the FDA cannot stop a drug if it appears to be in compliance. If it appears to be in compliance. Then it goes even one step further. It says you cannot prevent an individual who is not in the business of importing a prescription drug. This is going to be a safe haven for defense lawyers. They are going to love this. They are going to attack a lot of cases. Let me refer here to the DEA. DEA says, you know, this will create an undue burden on law enforcement to require the government to prove that someone is in the business of importing prescription drugs before even commencing an investigation. Many unscrupulous persons will simply claim they are 'not in the business of importing prescription drugs' in order to stifle investigations of potential criminal activity.”