One of the hottest topics around the country today is the debate about legalization of imported drugs. It seems like everyday another city or state governement is looking to save money by tapping into Canada's price control structure.

According to an article in The New York Times on Dec 21st by Robert Pear

The Bush administration said Tuesday that commercial importation of some low-cost prescription drugs from Canada might be feasible. But the savings to consumers would be small, it said, and the federal government would have to spend hundreds of million dollars a year to ensure the drugs'safety. The report was released amid growing support for laws on importing drugs. Republican proponents include Senators Olympia J. Snowe of Maine, John McCainof Arizona and Trent Lott of Mississippi; Gov. Tim Pawlenty of Minnesota; and Representative Jo Ann Emerson of Missouri, as well as several newly electedmembers of Congress. Sponsors of bills to legalize drug imports said they would keep pushing for it in the new Congress.''I never had much confidence that this study was going to be objective,'' said the sponsor of one bill, Senator Byron L. Dorgan, Democrat of North Dakota. Ms. Snowe said the administration had ''failed to provide any meaningful recommendations'' to Congress. The conclusions of the report are generally consistent with studies by the drug industry, the Food and Drug Administration, and the Congressional Budget Office. Many economists and health care experts say importing drugs from countries that control their prices would do little to solve the problem of expensive drugs here.

Apparently, Senator Byron L. Dorgan does not believe that the drug industry, the Food and Drug Administration, and the Congressional Budget Office along with numerous economists and health care experts are in any way objective. Because the finding of the Administration do not agree with his views, he declares them to not be objective. What we need here in America is a serious discussion about how to provide Americans with affordable drugs while not inhibiting drug companies incentives to develop new drugs. The country, and the world as a whole would be better served by Free Trade discussions by the U.S. government that ensures that the U.S. does not finance all of the research and development of new drugs for the rest of the world to enjoy.