Trump Admin Delays 90 Days on Drug Import Rule — SkimNews
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- Trump administration is delaying by 90 days a federal rule that could prevent Americans from obtaining prescription drugs from licensed international pharmacies, after the rule was initially slated to take effect Oct. 22.
- Patient advocacy groups and dozens of congressional lawmakers urged the administration to rethink the rule, warning it would drastically reduce the flow of medicines from Canada and other countries.
- The rule targets the de minimis exemption, which previously allowed shipments valued under $800 to pass through customs more easily without paying tariffs or submitting tracking data.
- The administration's stated goal is cracking down on illegal goods — particularly opioids — that enter the U.S. through low-value foreign shipments where shippers generally do not pay tariffs or submit data for tracking.
Why it matters: Americans who depend on Canadian and other international pharmacies for lower-cost prescriptions retain that access for at least 90 more days — a concrete, dated reprieve. But the delay doesn't resolve the underlying tension: the administration says it is using the de minimis rule to block opioid shipments, while critics say the same mechanism will cut off legitimate prescription drug access.
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