Where I got this says July 12, 2001 - Could it be 2002 ?
Originally in the LA TIMES
Titled: House Ok's Plan to Import Prescription Drugs

WASHINGTON -- The House voted Wednesday to make it legal for Americans to purchase prescription drugs from foreign countries by mail order, a step that will lead to significant savings for older Americans who use the most prescriptions.
Thousands of Americans from California and Arizona now travel to Mexico, while residents of some northern border states, including Minnesota and Vermont, go to Canada for medicine.
Many drugs sold in the United States are far less expensive in foreign countries where governments impose price restrictions.
The measure easily passed the House by a vote of 324-101. Republican Reps. Michael Bilirakis of Tarpon Springs and Ric Keller of Orlando were the only members of the Florida delegation to vote against the measure.
Passage of the House bill underscores the growing importance of prescription drug costs as a political issue.
President Bush will offer his proposals today for Medicare reform, highlighted by a call for Medicare's 35-million beneficiaries to participate in discount purchasing programs when they buy prescription drugs.
"The president is very troubled about the price of prescription drugs and the lack of access that senior citizens have to prescription drugs," Ari Fleischer, the White House press secretary, said Wednesday.
The White House hopes to create a clearinghouse that will enable seniors who do not have access to discount cards to enroll with companies -- called pharmacy benefit managers -- that buy prescription drugs on behalf of insurance companies and health plans.
Fleischer, at his daily White House briefing, said the president's discount-card proposal is "very important -- even before Medicare reform can be enacted -- to help senior citizens to get the best prices possible so that the cost of prescription drugs can be lowered."
The potential for even deeper savings for consumers could come from the House-approved measure allowing imports by mail.
Rep. Gil Gutknecht, R-Minn., sponsor of the measure, cited an example in which a constituent using a special ointment for a skin problem paid $130 for a tube in the United States but on a trip to Ireland bought the same medication for $46.
"The bottom line is if you are wealthy enough to travel to Europe twice a year, you can bring back all the drugs you need for the year," he said. "But if you are a senior living on a fixed income, you pay the full price.
Earlier, the House rejected an amendment by Rep. Bernard Sanders, I-Vt., that would have allowed companies -- distributors and marketers -- to import pharmaceuticals for sale to U.S. consumers. Sanders said he was pleased by the final approval of Gutknecht's measure, calling it a "solid victory" in the quest for lower pharmaceutical prices.
A second amendment, approved on a voice vote, would give the FDA $1-million to check patent claims by pharmaceutical companies trying to delay approval of generic versions of their drugs.
The drug reimportation amendment passed Wednesday applies only to individuals, allowing the freedom to order drugs.
- Information from the New York Times and Associated Press was included in this report.
"The House voted Wednesday to make it legal for Americans to purchase prescription drugs from foreign countries by mail order, a step that will lead to significant savings for older Americans who use the most prescriptions.