CHEROKEE MAIL-ORDER PHARMACY MAY SELL CANADIAN Rx DRUGS

Community pharmacists concerned about growing competitionfrom cheap mail-order pharmacies in Canada may soonhave another worry: competition from the Cherokee in NorthCarolina. Like other Native American tribes around the country,the Cherokee are developing plans to cash in on their status asa "sovereign nation" to market prescription drugs by mail topatients across the United States. The Mashantucket Pequot—atiny, 650-member tribe in Connecticut—currently operate a mailorderpharmacy that generates >$15 million in revenue a year.

Whereas the Pequot tribal nation sells only US drugs through its mail-order dispensary,the Cherokee are considering plans to buy pharmaceuticals for their pharmacyfrom Canada. A Canadian mail-order drug service operated by Native Americans inNorth Carolina would draw immediate attention from both federal and state regulators,who have taken the position that commercial importation of prescription medicationsis illegal.