Florida sues Biden Administration, losing $150 million per year

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DeSantis sues Biden administration over Canadian drug importation program – POLITICO

Florida is suing the Food and Drug Administration over its failure to act on a plan to import cheaper prescription drugs from Canada. The governor said the FDA was “unlawfully delaying” and “unreasonably delaying” the approval of the plan.

DeSantis estimated importing cheaper drugs from Canada could save the Florida state government up to $150 million per year.

Florida was the first state under President Donald Trump to take advantage of a 2003 federal law allowing states to pass medication-importation programs. But the Florida program has faced many obstacles, including red tape, stonewalling, strong-arming, and tactics to delay.

The United States spends more on health care than Canada, but Canadians still pay less for prescription drugs.

In response to inquiries, FDA said that it “does not comment on potential, pending, or ongoing litigation”. DeSantis hinted that politics might play a role in the decision, although it is unclear what is causing the delays.

Biden signed the inflation-reduction bill, which contains several provisions for saving money on drugs under Medicare.

Both Trump and DeSantis broke with their parties by pushing to import prescription drugs, but the drug industry is strong in Washington and state capitals and has opposed the idea.

Last year, Sen. Bernie Sanders, a Vermont independent, said that the Biden administration should have approved the Florida plan and that it should be adopted nationwide.

For more coverage on this story, check the following additional news sources:

  1. DeSantis sues Biden administration over Canadian drug importation program  POLITICO
  2. Florida sues FDA for slow approval of Canadian drug importation  Business Insider
  3. Florida sues U.S. Food and Drug Administration over plan to import prescription drugs from Canada  WPTV News Channel 5 West Palm
  4. Gov. Ron DeSantis announces the state of Florida’s lawsuit against FDA  WESH 2 Orlando
  5. Florida sues FDA over Canadian drug importation program  Axios