Finneran opposed to drug imports

House Speaker Thomas M. Finneran said he's not in favor of importing prescription drugs from Canada because it could harm pharmaceutical companies in the state.

Finneran's remarks come as the Senate considers a bill to require the state to seek federal permission to set up a website that would help Massachusetts residents buy Canadian drugs. Federal law prohibits the sale of imported drugs, but a growing number of Americans and local governments are buying Canadian drugs because they are cheaper.

When asked yesterday at a Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce breakfast about his stance on importing drugs from Canada, Finneran reiterated opposition that he had voiced last year.

"I'm very concerned about it," Finneran said. "I understand the political appeal of it. I think it's an indulgence, however, of a politically easy road that might have high negative consequences for all Massachusetts."

In explaining his position, Finneran recalled a recent trip he made to an AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP research laboratory in Waltham. "The psychology of a particular jurisdiction means an awful lot as to whether companies such as AstraZeneca and others come to Massachusetts in the first place," Finneran said. "The minute somebody starts talking about price controls or drug reimportation, all of that is put at risk."

Massachusetts is one of the country's hotbeds for biotechnology and pharmaceutical research. The state is home to about 280 biotech firms, employing 30,000 people, according to the Massachusetts Biotechnology Council, a trade group.

The biotech council backed Finneran's stance. "We're in agreement with him," said Vicki Greene, a council spokeswoman. "We need to be a business-friendly environment and a science-friendly environment."

Buying drugs north of the border, however, is popular with consumers because they are 30 percent to 80 percent cheaper due to the Canadian government's price controls.

Even though it is illegal to buy such drugs, the US government has yet to punish offenders. AARP Massachusetts, a group that represents about 800,000 people aged 50 and over in the Bay State, joined lawmakers at a State House news conference yesterday to support the Canadian drug bill approved this week by the Legislature's Joint Committee on Health Care.

"All Massachusetts residents and all American citizens should be able to buy American drugs at Canadian prices," said Deborah Banda, state director for the organization. "It's as simple as that."

If the bill passes, Massachusetts would join a growing number of governments that are encouraging consumers to buy Canadian drugs as a way to combat soaring drugs costs.

Currently, city employees and retirees in Springfield are eligible for a Canadian drug program. A limited program in Boston is planned to begin in July.

One of the bill's sponsors, state Representative Michael E. Festa, a Melrose Democrat, said the bill would not affect price controls and research and development, which he sees as federal issues. He said he is optimistic that Finneran will support the bill. "We think the objections are going to be overcome," he said.

State Senator Jarrett T. Barrios, a Cambridge Democrat, cited several politicians who have changed their position on drug reimportation, such as US Senator Trent Lott a Republican from Mississippi. "Two years ago there were a lot of naysayers," Barrios said. "This is a free market answer to a very thorny problem."

Charles Rasmussen, a spokesman for Finneran, declined to comment on the bill.

Matthew Rodriguez can be reached at mrodriguez@globe.com. Christopher Rowland of the Globe staff contributed to this report.