TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (NEWS SERVICE FLORIDA) - A move to allow the state to import prescription drugs from Canada is one step closer to passing the Florida House, which took up the plan Wednesday and readied it for a vote.
The bill (HB 19), sponsored by Rep. Tom Leek, R-Ormond Beach, has been championed by Gov Ron DeSantis and House Speaker Jose Oliva, R-Miami Lakes, as a way to lower prescription-drug costs.
The House bill, which likely will be approved during a floor session Thursday, would establish two programs to import FDA-approved drugs into the state: the Canadian Drug Importation Program, administered by the state Agency for Health Care Administration, and the International Drug Importation Program, administered by the state Department of Business and Professional Regulation.
Both programs would require federal approval before they could be implemented. A bill also has moved forward in the Senate, though it differs from the House version.
The News Service of Florida contributed to this report.