AARP Florida:  Big Drug Companies Want To Make Drugs Overseas At Lower Cost; They Just Don’t Want You to Save Too

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – AARP Florida State Director Jeff Johnson issued the following statement today, responding to a report issued by a group lobbying to stop lower prescription drug costs for Floridians:

“Some U.S. companies want to keep charging you inflated prices for prescription drugs. They stand to lose big if this proposal becomes law.”

“They’re telling Florida legislators that the purity of prescription drugs manufactured abroad can’t be trusted.”

“Actually, the website Pharmacychecker.com found in 2018 that 70 percent of the top-selling brand-name prescription drugs are manufactured overseas. As far back as 2011, the FDA testified to Congress that some 40 percent of finished prescription drugs and 80 percent of drug ingredients used in U.S. drug manufacture came from overseas.”

“More than 30 Canadian drug manufacturers are registered with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to produce drugs for U.S. markets, according to the National Academy for State Health Policy. And in Europe, the European Union inspectors already ensure that drugs manufactured there meet U.S. standards, the academy has said.”

“While there can be serious issues with counterfeit or contaminated illegal narcotics, AARP Florida believes it’s certainly possible to import safe, lower-cost prescription medicines.  Big drug companies are happy to reap lower costs for themselves of making drugs overseas. They just don’t want you to share in the lower costs.”

###

About AARP
AARP is the nation’s largest nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to empowering Americans 50 and older to choose how they live as they age. With nearly 38 million members and offices in every state, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, AARP works to strengthen communities and advocate for what matters most to families with a focus on health security, financial stability and personal fulfillment. AARP also works for individuals in the marketplace by sparking new solutions and allowing carefully chosen, high-quality products and services to carry the AARP name. As a trusted source for news and information, AARP produces the world’s largest circulation publications, AARP The Magazine and AARP Bulletin. To learn more, visit www.aarp.org or follow @AARP and @AARPadvocates on social media.