Trump proposes importing medicines, but he’s really seeking a quick political hit

The new White House plan to import medicines from Canada is being billed as historic, but you better gas up if you think the proposal will save you from making a trip across the border to buy insulin.

Along with some other medicines known as biologics, which are typically administered by physicians, the diabetes treatment will not be part of the new proposal announced on Wednesday. Neither will many cancer medicines. And this is just one of several limitations to a plan that, in all fairness, holds some potential, but appears politically motivated more than anything else.

This is among the reasons I think the plan will have, at best, a modest impact. But before I delve into the nitty-gritty, let’s look at the politics.

Timing, of course, is everything and when it comes to prescription drugs, President Trump needs