Back Off, Drug Companies

With surprising speed, Congress and President Clinton have tentatively agreed on a bill that would allow consumers to buy imported prescription drugs that are cheaper than the same drugs now sold in the United States.

The measure, drafted by Sen. James M. Jeffords (R-Vt.), is a roundabout and imperfect way of lowering U.S. prescription drug prices, which are up to three times higher than those in other nations. But it’s also the most meaningful drug reform that can be hoped for in this Congress, where partisan bickering has blunted more sweeping reforms.

Washington politicians have been falling over themselves to support Jeffords’ measure, which would allow pharmacies and wholesale distributors to buy U.S.-made prescription drugs abroad, reimport them and sell them to consumers at a lower cost. The House and Senate passed the bill overwhelmingly in July, and last week Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott and House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert told Clinton they wanted to see the bill enacted before Congress adjourns this month.

The bill, however, is hardly a done deal. The politically powerful pharmaceutical industry is pressuring House GOP leaders to amend it with impractical and unworkable regulatory hurdles, like requiring reimported drugs to go through the FDA’s “new drug approval” process, which can take up to 10 years. If the measure becomes law, drug companies could still try to undermine it, retaliating against distributors by withdrawing discounts currently in effect.

Such strong-arm tactics could backfire, hurting drug companies economically through the loss of wholesale customers that shift to other makers’ products and politically by spurring consumers to demand what the industry fears most: price controls dictated by the federal government. Drug companies and politicians should think long and hard before trying to shoot down Jeffords’ much-needed bill.