(Headline USA) Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis filed a lawsuit against the Food and Drug Administration this week, accusing the agency of delaying its acceptance of a proposal that would allow the state to import drugs at a cheaper price from Canada.
“Florid has been ready to deliver cheaper prescription drugs to those that need them for nearly two years,” DeSantis said in a statement.
The FDA has unreasonably delayed approval of our Canadian Prescription Drug Importation Program – which lowers prescription drug costs for Floridians. It was approved by Trump in 2020, and today we filed a lawsuit to end the FDA delay.
We have had enough of Biden’s bureaucracy. pic.twitter.com/egw2pEO2kY
— Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) August 31, 2022
“The lack of transparency by the Biden administration during the approval process, and failure to provide records on the importation proposal, is costing Floridians who are facing rising prices across the board due to inflation,” DeSantis said.
“Florida is confident in our importation model, and we continue to look for more ways to lower drug costs for Floridians while the FDA delays approval of this importation proposal.”
The lawsuit, filed in Tampa federal court, alleged that the FDA has unreasonably held up Florida’s application to begin importing medications from Canada for diabetes, Hepatitis C, HIV and other illnesses.
Florida was the first state in the country to apply for the FDA’s drug importation program. DeSantis personally lobbied the Trump administration to give the program its final authorization. President Joe Biden upheld the program in a July 2021 executive order.
“People use drugs in Canada – this isn’t Djibouti,” DeSantis argued.
“This is a safe country. I didn’t anticipate getting to this point where even the administration says they support it and then we just toil for months and months.”
