Chris Rice at OpEdNews is boiling mad about corrupting lobbyists and duplicitous politicians who have made it difficult for U.S. residents to buy drugs from Canadian pharmacies. Here’s an excerpt from his column:

LIE: The Bush administration is fighting importation of cheaper prescription drugs from Canada by claiming they are unsafe and thereby protecting pharmaceutical companies who have given over $74 billion (or $2,033 per hour) [in contributions] since 2000.

FACT: HHS and FDA officials cannot identify a single American injured as a result drugs purchased from licensed Canadian pharmacies. One of the nation’s leading health experts stated the administration’s argument was “hogwash” since “drugs purchased through the Canadian health care system are every bit as safe as those available in the United States.”

LIE: [Bush said:] I haven’t yet [decided to ban importation of Canadian drugs.]. I just want to make sure they’re safe. When a drug comes in from Canada , I want to make sure it cures you and doesn’t kill you.

FACT: White House Strongly Opposed Drug Re-Importation Despite Congressional Research Service Reports Concluding Canadian Drugs Are Just as Safe as Those in the US . . In a Statement of Administration Principals issued by the White House Office of Management and Budget on July 23, 2003, Bush stated his strong opposition to drug re-importation.

The SAP states, “H.R. 2427 [to allow the re-importation of prescription drugs] is dangerous legislation. It would expose Americans to greater potential risk of harm from unsafe or ineffective drugs, would be extremely costly to implement, and would overwhelm FDA’s already heavily burdened regulatory system.” This despite the fact that the Congressional Research Service, a branch of the Library of Congress, issued reports in 2001 and 2003, concluding both times that the Canadian drug supply was safe for importation to the US.

The 2003 report stated, “The statutory requirements for approving and marketing pharmaceutical products in the United States and Canada are, in general, quite similar.” It found that medications manufactured and distributed in Canada meet or surpass quality control guidelines set by the FDA.

As the T-shirt says, “Truth Hurts, Lies Kill.” The painful truth is that when it comes to prescription drugs, our government is in the pocket of giant corporations who put their interests — rather than our health — first. Facing this truth and fighting for change is the better solution than accepting government lies — lies that are slowly killing our healthcare system.