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Senators Ted Cruz, Mike Lee, and Rand Paul were among 9 Republicans who sided with the amendment. But 13 Democrats crossed over to kill the consumer empowerment measure.
In the late night vote-a-rama of Wednesday, A Minnesota senator pressed an amendment to a healthcare bill which involves the ability of uninsured consumers to leverage their limited assets by purchasing maintenance medications from Winnipeg pharmacies and other sources. This is one issue which eventually ended the political career of former 1st District Congressman, John Sullivan. It seems Jim Inhofe and James Lankford are going down the same path of taking Pharmaceutical lobbyists' money in exchange for placing an import ban on drugs made in America, but reimported back into the country at generic prices. The standard defense is that safety standards are not assured by our own FDA. But that doesn't stop Swiss chocolates from being purchased over the internet, does it? The US consumers actually subsidize low Canadian prices because pharmaceutical corporations have obtained extended patent rights in the US. market. In the USA, they have 143% more time to recoup their investment. Many other nations allow generics to produce identical products after the first 7 years. But the USA expends the trade protectionist term to 17 years and even allows the medicine to apply for a second 17 year patent protection. |
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Canadian consumers pay market prices for USA-made medications, as well as generic equivalents. Meanwhile, US consumers pay a hugely inflated price for the same medication, made at the same factory, from the same pharmaceutical corporation.
So essentially, the Canadians don't pay an equal portion of the cost of developing the newest medications. Our consumers, health insurers, and even our government; pays billions to keep the rest of the world's consumers healthy and medicated. But US consumers pay a massively higher price to stay alive and healthy.
U.S. Senate Roll Call Votes 115th Congress - 1st Sessionas compiled through Senate LIS by the Senate Bill Clerk under the direction of the Secretary of the Senate
Vote Summary Question: On the Amendment (Klobuchar Amdt. No. 178 ) Vote Number: 20 Vote Date: January 11, 2017, 11:06 PM Required For Majority: 1/2 Vote Result: Amendment Rejected Amendment Number: S.Amdt. 178 to S.Con.Res. 3 (No short title on file) Statement of Purpose: To establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund relating to lower prescription drug prices for Americans by importing drugs from Canada. Vote Counts: YEAs 46, NAYs 52, Not Voting 2 |
Grouped By Vote Position
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