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Rx Express
Looking to save money and have a little fun, local seniors make a drug run to Canada in search of cheaper medication.
-Deborah Bolling

June 13-19, 2002

cover story

Alternative Meds

One Pennsylvania doctor wants to save seniors the hassle of riding the bus.

by Deborah Bolling

Joseph P. Rudolph, a doctor practicing in and around Pittsburgh, was not on the trip. But he says he believes he may have a better solution for American seniors like Dorsey, Armstrong, Cotton, Boris and thousands of others who have serious health needs.

"Under the Pennsylvania and federal laws, as a physician I am permitted to order medication from any place I desire," he explains, speaking from one of his offices, in Irwin, Pa., near Pittsburgh. "According to this policy, I can also import medications from Canada."

For the past three-and-a-half months, Rudolph, 52, has been providing affordable name-brand medication to his private patients, as well as 350 others, through his service, the Physician Medicine Assist Program.

Through his unique prescription delivery system, which he says took him two years to establish, Rudolph accepts referrals from other physicians. After he reviews the patients' medical histories and prescriptions to assess the possible danger of interactions, he legally and openly obtains medications from Canada, which he sells to his patients at cost. Rudolph says he does not charge a fee for his services.

"Basically, what I say to folks is ŒIf you need help with your medicine, give me a call,'" he explains. "This is what I do. I take care of people. Doctors are not providers, as the insurance companies would have you believe. We are advocates for our patients."

Rudolph says he is under constant pressure from the Canadian government, and, although a number of private American physicians have now become allies of the elderly, he says he believes he is the only physician in the country offering such comprehensive services to patients.

"This is not an easy thing to do," he says. "But this program is designed for people who really need the help. Our motto is: You don't have to go to Canada anymore. Now you can get your medication in Pennsylvania."

For more information about the Physician Medicine Assist Program, call 412-653-7278.

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