CPPI Applauds Bipartisan Fla. Lawmakers for Pressing Fed Agencies to Protect Safe, Affordable Prescription Drug Access

Seven Florida Members of Congress Warn New Oct. 22 CBP Mail Rule Could Cut Off Patients Who Rely on Licensed Canadian Pharmacies for Critical Daily Medications

HILLSBOROUGH, NJ, UNITED STATES, October 2, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- The Campaign for Personal Prescription Importation (CPPI), a nonprofit advocate for access to affordable prescription medications, today applauded bipartisan pressure from seven Florida members of Congress who are demanding answers from federal agencies on a new U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) rule. The rule threatens Americans' ability to receive lower-cost prescription medications by mail for personal use from licensed Canadian and international pharmacies.

For more than two decades, Americans have been able to order a 90-day supply of their prescriptions by mail from licensed pharmacies in Canada. That ends Oct. 22 under CBP's rule, Indefinite Suspension of the De Minimis Exemption for Mail Shipments and New Postal Informal Entry. Each prescription mailed from abroad will have to go through a burdensome, formal customs entry, filed by a licensed customs broker and backed by an exorbitant financial guarantee, with a company or person legally responsible for any shipment that doesn't qualify. Few personal prescription shipments have ever had to clear that bar, The Wall Street Journal reported. CPPI has been advised that, as CBP and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) plan to carry out the rule, shipping personal prescriptions into the U.S. will be prohibited in almost all circumstances.

On Sept. 24, Republican Reps. Aaron Bean (FL-04), Gus Bilirakis (FL-12) and C. Scott Franklin (FL-18) wrote to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Markwayne Mullin, Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., CBP Commissioner Rodney S. Scott and Acting FDA Commissioner Kyle Diamantas. They warned that the rule "will inadvertently impact our constituents and millions of other Americans' access to safe, affordable medications sourced through Canadian and International pharmacies."

The lawmakers noted that Americans in border states can travel to licensed pharmacies abroad, while Floridians must rely on trusted mail-order pharmacies to reach the same lower-cost options. They asked the agencies to respond by Oct. 2, including whether CBP and FDA will ensure the rule does not affect Americans' ability to order prescriptions from licensed international pharmacies for personal use by mail, and whether CBP has changed its Oct. 2006 policy of not blocking these personal shipments.

Today, Democratic Reps. Lois Frankel (FL-22), Maxwell Frost (FL-10), Debbie Wasserman Schultz (FL-25) and Frederica Wilson (FL-24) were among 71 House Democrats, led by Reps. Mark Pocan (WI-02) and Jan Schakowsky (IL-09), who sent a separate letter to the same four officials. The lawmakers urged the agencies to delay the new procedures for prescription medicines unless they can give clear assurances that personal-use prescriptions that do not appear to present an unreasonable risk will still be allowed into the country. They asked for a response by Oct. 8.

"Florida lawmakers from both parties understand the harm this rule will bring to their constituents, and we are grateful they are demanding answers," said Ken Hunter, Executive Director of CPPI. "For more than 20 years, licensed Canadian pharmacies have been a lifeline for seniors on fixed incomes and for people who are uninsured or underinsured. Floridians and the vast majority of Americans can't drive a few miles to Canada. The mail is how they get their daily prescription medications. In three weeks, they will be left to pay overwhelmingly high U.S. retail prices they cannot afford, or go without the medications that manage their diabetes, heart conditions and blood clots."

The Republican letter is available here. The Democratic letter is available here.

For more information on safe importation and to join (for free) the fight for affordable medications, visit www.PersonalImportation.org.

About CPPI:
The Campaign for Personal Prescription Importation (CPPI), based in Hillsborough, N.J., is a national nonprofit patient advocacy organization that fights for Americans' access to safe, affordable prescription medications from Canada for personal use. Tens of millions of Americans, especially the elderly and others on fixed incomes, struggle to pay the very high price of prescription medications in the U.S. CPPI is their voice. For more information and to join us: www.PersonalImportation.org.

Ken Hunter
Campaign for Personal Prescription Importation
+1 202-765-3290
info@PersonalImportation.org