Internet drug sales to the U.S. down sharply in 2006

[JohnMack]

Source: Globe and Mail

Fewer Canadian-made drugs were sold to American customers via the Internet in 2006, according to data compiled by a pharmaceutical industry group.

IMS Health says while 2005 sales to the U.S. by Canadian internet pharmacies reached $420-million, 2006 sales declined almost 50 per cent, to $211-million.

IMS spokesman Ian Therriault says just a few years ago, Internet sales of prescription drugs to the United States were booming, but this is no longer the case.

He says reasons for the decline include a stronger Canadian dollar and a new Medicare prescription plan that extends coverage to uninsured and underinsured Americans.

Mr. Therriault says negative press coverage around counterfeit and foreign drugs entering the U.S. market may also have played a role in dampening sales.

But he adds that pending legislation in the U.S., aimed at allowing drug imports, may change this declining trend.