[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 150 (Thursday, October 23, 2003)]
[Senate]
[Page S13142]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. DORGAN (for himself, Ms. Snowe, Ms. Stabenow, Mr. Johnson, 
        Mr. Pryor, Mr. Dayton, Mr. Leahy, Mr. Levin, Mr. Feingold, Mr. 
        McCain, and Mr. Jeffords):
  S. 1781. A bill to authorize the Secretary of Health and Human 
Services to promulgate regulations for the reimportation of 
prescription drugs, and for other purposes; read the first time.
  Mr. DORGAN. Mr. President, today I am introducing the Pharmaceutical 
Market Access Act of 2003 in the Senate, along with my colleagues, 
Senators Snowe, Stabenow, Johnson, Pryor, Dayton, Leahy, Levin, 
Feingold, McCain, and Jeffords. This legislation is the Senate 
companion to H.R. 2427, which passed the House of Representatives by a 
wide, bipartisan 243-186 vote earlier this year.
  This bill would give Americans the benefit of the global market in 
purchasing FDA-approved medicines. Rather than paying the highest 
prices in the world for their prescription drugs, Americans, through 
their local pharmacist or drug wholesaler, should be able to access 
FDA-approved medicines from Canada and 24 other major industrialized 
countries. The Congressional Budget Office recently estimated that this 
legislation would save taxpayers $40.4 billion, including $4.5 billion 
in savings for the Federal Government.
  As my colleagues know, the conference committee on Medicare currently 
has before it House and Senate bills that include pharmaceutical market 
access provisions. My hope is that the Medicare conferees will include 
strong drug importation language that will give American consumers 
immediate relief from high drug prices. If not, however, I will fight 
to have this bill called up separately in the Senate at the earliest 
available opportunity.
  I ask unanimous consent that the text of my legislation be printed in 
the Record.
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