Colorado’s Implementation of a Canadian Prescription Drug Importation Program

In late January, Colorado Governor Polis announced the Department of Health Care and Financing (DHCF) released an Invitation to Negotiate (ITN) to multiple vendors for Colorado’s Canadian Drug Importation Program. The ITN solicits vendors to manage program oversight and the distribution of imported drugs from Canada to Colorado.

In 2019, the Colorado General Assembly passed Senate Bill 19-005 (SB19-005), which authorized the DHCF to seek approval from the federal government to establish an importation program that will provide access to Canada’s lower priced drugs to Colorado employers and consumers.

Certain prescription drugs may be imported after there was a change in federal policy in late 2020. The new final federal rule implements a provision of federal law that allows FDA-authorized programs to import certain Canadian prescription drugs to Colorado (and other states implementing similar state programs).

The National Association of Boards of Pharmacy (NABP) is asking for additional information on the safety of allowing importation of drugs from Canada prior to allowing this practice. NABP cautions that allowing such practices places American patients at risk.

Stay tuned. More to come on Canadian Drug Importation.