Purchase your prescriptions from other countries - legally!

Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius and Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich met with senior citizens last week to announce that Kansas is joining the I-SaveRx prescription drug importation program - the first program in the nation to allow citizens to purchase lower cost, safe prescription drugs from state-approved pharmacies in Europe and Canada.

"We must make health care and life-sustaining prescription drugs more affordable for seniors and hardworking Kansans. After carefully reviewing the I-SaveRx program, I'm convinced it will help tens of thousands of Kansans safely obtain the medicine they need at prices they can afford," Governor Sebelius said.

"I'm grateful to Governor Blagojevich for his leadership and his willingness to allow Kansas to participate in this innovative partnership."

Governor Blagojevich said, "I want to commend Governor Sebelius for her leadership and encourage other states to join us in this bold step to take control away from powerful pharmaceutical companies and give it to the hardworking Americans who are unable to pay for their medicine. Life saving medicines should not be luxury products available only to people who can afford them. Through I-SaveRx, seniors and others with high prescription drug costs can now afford the medicine they need. Already, more than 30,000 people in Illinois, Wisconsin and Missouri have called or gone online to begin enrolling in I-SaveRx. Today we're extending that opportunity to Kansas' 2.7 million residents."

Kansas is the fourth state to join the program developed by Illinois and launched in early October, following Wisconsin and Missouri into the program.

With the addition of Kansas, I-SaveRx now provides more than 26 million residents in four states with access to lower-priced prescription drugs through a network of more than 60 inspected and approved pharmacies and wholesalers in Canada, the United Kingdom and Ireland. Consumers in Kansas, Missouri, Wisconsin and Illinois can look up I-SaveRx prices and start the enrollment process by calling toll-free 1866-ISAVE33, or visiting www.I-SaveRx.net.

Earlier this month, Governor Sebelius launched the HealthyKansas initiative to contain runaway health care costs, streamline the health care system, and make health insurance and prescription drugs more affordable for thousands of Kansas' children, working parents and small business owners and employees.

In addition to I-SaveRx, Sebelius' HealthyKansas reform initiative calls for establishment of a Kansas pharmacy network to provide lower cost generic drugs to low-wage, working Kansans. The state will also continue working on the development of a comprehensive pharmacy resource website.

Governor Blagojevich launched I-SaveRx on Oct. 4 and extended an invitation to other states to join the program. Participants in the I-SaveRx plan can save an average of 25 to 50 percent on the cost of the most common medications used to treat chronic conditions.