LAKELAND, Fla. — Gov. Ron DeSantis announced that the State of Florida has filed a lawsuit against the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) during a press conference on Wednesday.
He claimed that the FDA has kept the state waiting 630 days for an answer to a plan that could potentially lower prescription drug costs in Florida by importing them from Canada.
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"We sent it up to Washington during the Trump Administration for approval from the FDA," DeSantis stated. "It's just been sitting at FDA for months."
The Governor went on to say that the Agency for Health Care Administration (ACHA) filed a Freedom of Information Act in early July, seeking records from the FDA for transparency in the approval request. The FDA had 30 working days to respond, and DeSantis stated that they have yet to receive a response.
"They have unlawfully withheld and unreasonably delayed Florida's program and we think this violates federal law," he stated. "So we're asking a federal judge to order the FDA to put an end to that delay and to approve Florida's program."
Gov. DeSantis's plan could potentially cut consumer costs in half by importing drugs from Canada, which was supported by the Trump Administration in 2020 when it created two new pathways for states to apply for safe importation through the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
The Biden Administration upheld the motion in 2021 when it dismissed a lawsuit filed by the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America that claimed the drugs posed safety concerns.
Canadian drugs are around 28% cheaper than those purchased in the United States.
