 | Alex Ice
along with his business partner and father Dan Ice, own Canada Drug, located at 352 S. West St. in Wichita. Locally owned and operated, Canada Drug orders lower-cost prescription drugs from Canada, delivered to the U.S., through Medi-Mart Pharmacy, a Canadian pharmacy chain based in Winnipeg. Dan Ice oversees the daily operations of two Kansas City Canada Drug locations. The partners also have a Topeka location. Alex holds a Masters Degree in Business from Embry-Riddle. A flight instructor with Flight Safety, Alex also teaches classes in Management at University of Phoenix Wichita Campus, along with his wife Denise, a former news anchor. You can reach Canada Drug at (316) 945- MEDS (6337) or fax (316) 945-6330. |
Drugs and Prescriptions
2004-02-01 16:13:00
Q & A on drugs from Canada
ANSWER: The prescription drugs that are being imported from Canada are the same medications dispensed in the U. S., often manufactured in the same plants, prescribed by American doctors, and filled by licensed Canadian pharmacists. The Canadian government has very strict requirements for dispensing drugs, and is very similar to the requirements in the US. In the U.S., spending on prescription drugs rose, on average, about 13% a year between 1993 and 2001. For the next decade, it is expected to rise about 12% a year. Prices of brand name prescription drugs have been rising at nearly four times the rate of general inflation. As a result, thousands upon thousands of American citizens have avoided the "medicine or food" dilemma with prescriptions filled by Canadian pharmacies. A recent Harris Interactive study found that high priced out-of-pocket drug costs cause massive noncompliance in medication use. Millions of Americans fail to ask doctors for the prescriptions they need, fail to fill the prescriptions they get, fail to take their full doses, or take the medicines less often than they should. The study further shows that nearly one American woman in five, between the ages of 50 and 64, failed to fill a prescription because it was too expensive. The problems affect not only low-income seniors but the uninsured and middle-class people on fixed incomes as well. The process of ordering prescription drugs from Canada is quite simple, and more importantly…LEGAL. • Patients must provide a prescription from their doctor. (Computerized slips, empty bottles or labels are not accepted.) Prescriptions cannot be transferred from a U.S. pharmacy to a Canadian pharmacy. A faxed copy of the original doctor signed prescription must be presented and may be faxed directly to the company placing the order.• You will be asked to complete a medical history form, which will be faxed to the Canadian pharmacy along with the prescription. • A licensed Canadian physician will review all prescription orders and medical history before any orders are filled. • The maximum you may purchase is a 3-month supply of each of your medications, provided that you have a valid prescription for that supply of medication. Due to regulations put into place by the FDA, American citizens are only allowed to import a maximum of 3-months worth of medication for personal use. Any amount above this 3-month limit is not considered "personal use". If your physician writes a prescription for more than a 3-month supply, your prescription can be refilled, as you require. Any narcotic or controlled substance cannot be shipped across the border, including any habit-forming medications such as Valium and Tylenol #3. • Because the pharmacy is located in Canada, no insurance is accepted. If needed a receipt can be furnished. • Prescriptions are delivered by mail to the home within 10-14 days. They are the exact same medications that you would receive in the U.S. Prices are lower in Canada because the government negotiates prices with drug companies. And, drug companies selling into Canada are not allowed to advertise their products. The benefit to the U.S. consumer is: The same prescription drugs… from the same manufacturers… at a savings of 49% on brand name and 60-70% on generic drugs.
