Political Quotes

“at a time when the importance of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is highlighted by concerns over the safety of pharmaceuticals, it would be foolish to move forward with importation policies that would circumvent the safety regulations of the FDA. I want to take this opportunity to highlight a recent international Internet pharma-trafficking network that was shut down in Philadelphia, which I strongly believe provides a very accurate, and disturbing, window on what exactly a prescription drug importation scheme would mean for Americans. On April 20, 2005, the Department of Justice announced the unsealing of an indictment returned by a Federal grand jury on April 6, 2005. The indictment chronicled how the ``Bansal Organization'' used the Internet to fill orders for pharmaceuticals. In turn, this crime ring facilitated millions of un-prescribed pills coming into the United States--of which the bio-efficacy and the safety have yet to be determined--to consumers who only needed a credit card. These drugs included potentially dangerous narcotics, such as codine and Valium, drugs that can cause serious harm if not taken under a physician's supervision, and which have been highlighted repeatedly as drugs that pose special concerns as we debate possible importation.…”