Posted At www.allamericanpatriots.com
April 28, 2005 -- AUGUSTA ? Local lawmaker Rep. Rick Burns, D-Berwick, is sponsoring a bill designed to help Maine residents without prescription coverage purchase drugs online from domestic companies and wholesalers in Canada, Great Britain and Ireland.
The lead sponsor, Senate Majority Leader Michael Brennan, presented the bill before the Health and Human Services Committee, which devoted Thursday afternoon to a series of public hearings on prescription drug bills aimed at helping Maine people with the rising costs of prescription drugs.
According to Burns, a member of the Health and Human Services Committee, reducing the costs and helping to provide better access to prescription drugs is particularly important in a largely rural, working class state like Maine.
"When the health and safety of our community members depends on access to prescription medications, we have a moral obligation to help ensure that those drugs are available, and that Maine families can afford them," said Burns. "The safe reimportation of drugs from other countries is the key to lowering costs."
Under the proposal the state would establish the Maine Save program, which would act as a clearinghouse for people who lack comprehensive prescription drug coverage. Through the program's Web site, Maine Save members would be able to purchase safely low-cost drugs that are subject to random purity testing by the state.
"This issue cuts to the core of individual health and safety and Maine people's need to know they have the tools to be healthy," Burns said. "Everyone in the state deserves this basic level of security, which is the key to contributing positively to our community."
An advisory panel made up of pharmacists, consumers and licensed providers of health care would meet twice annually to review the program for access, quality and safety issues.
Burns noted the American Medical Association has adopted a formal policy of support for prescription drug reimportation, while also recognizing the rising costs of prescription drugs. He pointed to a recent report from the American Medical Association that reported uninsured patients pay about 72 percent more for prescription drugs than the federal government pays for the same drugs for employees enrolled in the federal health plan.
