Texas House approves bill that would import prescription drugs from Canada to save consumers money

AUSTIN (CBSNewsTexas.com) – The Lone Star State could soon look to our neighbors to the North to save Texans money on their prescription drugs.

On Wednesday, the Texas House approved House Bill 25 nearly unanimously, 144-1, that would create a program allowing certain drugs to be imported from Canada.

It must still be debated and approved by the Texas Senate.

Kelly Anderson of Dallas hopes a new bill will become law and that would save her and other Texans money on prescription drugs. "That would be absolutely amazing."

She told CBS News Texas she and her husband must spend thousands of dollars on medications to treat her asthma. "So, until I meet my out-of-pocket deductible, which is $8,000, until then, I have to pay for everything out-of-pocket."

Both Democratic and Republican lawmakers who wrote and pushed for the bill held a news conference at the Texas Capitol Wednesday morning.

Representative James Talarico, D-Austin, who authored the bill said, "Texans paid twice as much as Canadians for their prescription drugs. We can help ensure that Texans can afford the prescription drugs they need for themselves and for their families. This bill is about saving lives."

The legislation would require the state to work with Canadian suppliers and select drugs that would save Texans money. 

The Texas House did not include any estimates of potential savings in its analysis of the bill. 

Talarico's legislative office pointed to other states that have proposed similar programs.

Florida estimates its state agencies could save more than $150 million dollars.

Colorado says patients and employers there could save 65%. 

That state has a long list of medications that would be included in its program and details the potential savings. 

One example is the EpiPen. 

Colorado says the price here in the U.S. is $265.

Importing it from Canada would cost $91, a 66% savings.

New Mexico, Maine, Vermont and New Hampshire have passed similar programs.

All of these states are waiting for FDA approval.

We asked Dallas Mavericks Owner Mark Cuban about the Texas House bill.

In January 2022, he helped launch Cost Plus Drugs, an online pharmacy that offers more than 1,000 generic drugs and promises big savings by cutting out the middleman and negotiating with drug manufacturers directly.

Responding to the legislation, Cuban said, "Why don't they buy from costplusdrugs.com, a Texas based company? We have Canadians trying to buy from us!" 

Steve Rodriguez, a pharmacist at Dougherty's Pharmacy in Dallas said, "A program like this would have the potential to save Texans money, but it would not be a slam dunk."

He also said safety of the drugs is crucial. "For me as a pharmacist, whenever we order medications, the first thing we have to think about is safety. Is this drug safe? Where did it come from? We have a track and trace, it's a pedigree. We know where that drug comes from."

During a House legislative committee hearing last month, the Texas Pharmacy Association opposed the bill, expressing concerns over safety.

The House bill requires each drug that's imported from Canada to meet FDA standards and the FDA would also have to approve the state's program.

State Representative Brian Harrison, R-Waxahachie, served in the Trump administration, which allowed states to create these programs. 

He said safety is built into the program. "Most API or active pharmaceutical ingredients are already imported from abroad. The overwhelming majority, close to 80 percent of it, is already imported. That's the stuff in the pill that is doing the stuff it's supposed to be doing in your body."

Kelly Anderson is hoping for relief soon. "I spend so much money on getting prescriptions and insurance-wise that it'd be so amazing to get a wholesale price of all the different medicines I'd have to take."