March 3, 2020
In November 2019, the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) released a proposed rule laying out a process to design a program for the wholesale importation of prescription drugs from Canada, as required by legislation passed in the first legislative session. After receiving and reviewing public comments, the Department has provisionally adopted the rule as it was proposed. The Legislature is now reviewing the rule.
Maine DHHS continues to make progress, including by convening a series of stakeholder meetings to discuss key components of a wholesale drug importation program. Following the first meeting, a memorandum was developed to give an overview of program design considerations and outline key questions.
In addition to using the meetings as a forum for discussion of these questions, the Department is soliciting written feedback from interested stakeholders. Commenters are encouraged to focus their responses on the questions outlined in the memorandum, but other comments relevant to the specifics of program design are welcome. In order to ensure compliance with a recent amendment to the Department's proposed rule during the legislative approval process, the deadline for written comments will be March 16, 2020.
Comments should be emailed to Megan.Garratt-Reed@Maine.gov.