PlainBillCongress, translated.Legislation. Context. Public interest.Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.
Congressional Research Service
Version 00 · Introduced in House · Jul 14, 2003
Affordable Medicine Safety and Access Act - Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services, directly or through contract with one or more public or nonprofit private entities, to establish a voluntary program to certify Internet and mail-order pharmacies. Sets conditions for certification which shall protect consumers, including controls to protect patient privacy and confidentiality. States that certification shall be effective for one year but may be renewed. Allows the Secretary to terminate a certification. Prohibits an Internet or mail-order pharmacy: (1) displaying a seal of certification without in fact being certified; or (2) making a false claim of certification.
Adds provisions concerning the importation by individuals of prescription drugs from Canada under specified circumstances. Directs the Secretary to establish by regulation, for such circumstances, a waiver of prohibitions under the Act that apply to such drugs.
Directs the Secretary to conduct studies regarding: (1) Internet and mail-order pharmacies claiming Canadian sources for prescription drugs; and (2) in-person personal importation from Canada.
People & committees
Rep. Brown, Sherrod [D-OH-13] · D–OH
Legislative record
A procedural vote is different from passage. Passage in one chamber does not establish enactment. Explore the glossary.
Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.
Referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Primary sources
Text links open the official source. We currently store references to these documents.
No related bills are listed in this snapshot. This does not establish whether the proposal has appeared in earlier Congresses.
Source last updated: Aug 18, 2025. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.
AI Conversation Starters
Choose a perspective, copy a prompt, and paste it into your preferred AI. Each prompt includes the bill version and available official source links, and asks for counterarguments as well as supporting evidence.
Analyze H.R.2717 as objectively as possible. Explain its main provisions, who would be affected, possible benefits and harms, implementation, exceptions, and uncertainties. Present the strongest arguments for and against it, and identify evidence needed to assess its public impact.
Examine H.R.2717 through a progressive lens, focusing on fairness, access, economic inequality, and effects on vulnerable communities. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and distinguish stated goals from demonstrated outcomes.
Examine H.R.2717 through a conservative lens, focusing on fiscal responsibility, institutional stability, federalism, and the scope of government. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and any provisions that challenge this perspective.
Examine H.R.2717 through a civil-liberties and limited-government lens. Consider individual rights, privacy, voluntary choice, accountability, and government power. Explain tradeoffs, possible safeguards, and the strongest counterarguments without assuming the proposal is beneficial or harmful.