GRAND ISLAND, N.Y. — AARP New York inflated a 20-foot pill bottle Thursday on the bank of the Niagara River.
Just across the water in Canada, it says the same prescription drugs are less than half the price.
"At a certain point, the government needs to step in and protect consumers from just these flyaway prices, just people being able to control the health of our citizenry," Kathleen Benedetti-Fisher, associate state director of community engagement, said.
The demonstration is meant to draw attention to legislation that would allow the state Department of Health to seek federal certification under which approved wholesalers could import drugs that meet U.S. Food and Drug Administration standards from other countries.
"There's a lot of support in Albany for this. We just need to see them get it over the finish line. There's only a week left in the legislative session so time is running out to act," said Joe Stilling, associate state director for advocacy.
The state Senate has already passed the bill and advocates are hoping the Assembly will do the same. After Thursday's event, AARP delivered a letter signed by more than 4,000 members to Majority Leader Crystal Peoples-Stokes' office. The organization said over and over again it’s heard heart-wrenching stories from seniors who can't afford their medication.
"We know that one in five people that we surveyed on this don't fill prescriptions as prescribed, mainly due to costs,” Stilling said. “People are splitting pills. People are making tough choices between keeping the lights on and the heat on in the wintertime, keeping food on the table and taking the life-saving medication that they need. It's not right."
Earlier this year, the federal government approved Florida as the first such program in the nation and a handful of other states have already applied. AARP hopes introducing imports to the market will lower costs in general, even though it says it's hard to explain why prices are so high already.
"That's the same question that we're asking pharmaceutical companies ourselves and the same question that everybody should be asking: why are we paying more when just a few thousand yards away they're paying so much less and all over the world?" Benedetti-Fisher asked.
AARP said some opposition has questioned the safety of importation programs. The organization said there are a number of reasons not to be concerned, including the facts drug manufacturing is already a global industry, safety standards are comparable in Canada and Europe and licensed wholesalers can help implement the program to ensure safety.