Debating drug spending.(LETTERS)

0 Comments | Washington Times, The, March, 2005

Byline: THE WASHINGTON TIMES Doug Bandow rightly points out that the price of drugs is not the highest factor in the cost of U.S. health care ("The costs of health care" Op-Ed, Wednesday). Nevertheless, drug companies benefit, at the expense of patients, from the lack of free trade in pharmaceuticals.

The ban on drug reimportation helps drug companies enjoy the highest profit margins of any U.S. industry, almost four times the Fortune 500 average. Removing the ban on drug reimportation will cut costs for American consumers without harming research and development. ALEX SINGLETON President Globalization Institute London * I must issue a word of caution to Doug Bandow as he cites the report from the Office of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid...