Crist wants to end ban on imported drugs
His health policy would include mandatory phys ed in schools, says the GOP candidate for governor.
By ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published October 6, 2006
MIAMI - Floridians should have more access to low-cost prescription drugs, including those from Canada, Charlie Crist, Republican candidate for governor, said Thursday, outlining his plan for improving the state's health care.
Crist said he planned to work with congressional representatives to repeal the ban on importing such drugs from Canada.
"As long as they're safe, Floridians deserve them, and we're going to work with our members of Congress to make that happen," Crist told reporters outside the Ben Leon Medical Center in Miami.
In 2005, officials stepped up efforts to halt prescription drug imports, but the federal government reversed course this month and said it will stop seizing small amounts of lower-priced prescription medicines mailed from Canada. The policy will allow Americans to import roughly a 90-day supply, though the law banning imports of prescription drugs remains on the books.
Crist said he also plans to promote healthier lifestyles and practices among Floridians. He said he would create the position of state surgeon general, who would head Florida's Department of Health and use the high-profile position to promote preventive health care.
"I will require physical education every day for every student," Crist added. The state would help school districts pay for the added classes with an expected budget surplus, he said.
Crist's drug plan and his proposals to negotiate with the drug industry for volume discounts for Floridians, along with allowing businesses to pool together to get cheaper insurance for their employees, are similar to proposals Democratic candidate Jim Davis presented in March.
Crist supports insurance purchasing associations that could join across state lines to negotiate better rates. Such a plan would require congressional action.
Davis spokesman Josh Earnest questioned why Crist waited until a month before the election to present his health care plan.