Americans flocking to Mexico for pharmaceuticals.

• Position: Medication - Missing Food and Drug Administration standards - Brief Article - Statistical Data Included

As many as 40% of U.S. residents who enter Mexico this year will return home with a souvenir of their visit--a prescription drug that has not met U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) safety standards. While the majority may experience no ill effects, many others risk adverse reactions and some actually may die, according to Marvin D. Shepherd, director of the Center for Pharmacoeconomic Studies at The University of Texas College of Pharmacy, Austin. The result of importing these potentially deadly, and often illegal, pharmaceuticals into the U.S. is a problem of staggering proportion, he argues. Shepherd played a key role in getting Rohypnol, a sedative/ hypnotic often known as the "date rape drug," banned from the U.S. in 1997.

The situation along the border mirrors a larger national issue. It is estimated that more than 2,000,000 packages of pharmaceuticals enter the U.S. illegally each year through the mail system. This does not include the large number of additional drugs that enter the country in the arms, pockets, shopping bags, and purses of those traveling home from foreign countries.

Shepherd explains that Americans venture into Mexico to purchase prescription drug products because of easy access, lower prices, and availability of drugs that cannot be obtained in the U.S. marketplace. The problem has escalated significantly over the past 10 years. For example, he points out, more than 80% of patients in one El Paso clinic alone go to Mexico to buy their prescription drugs.

"If you want a full perspective of the size of this importation industry, I invite you to visit any one of the Mexican border towns of Texas," Shepherd emphasizes. "Rows of `farmacias' line the streets of Nuevo...