A vial of insulin costs far more in the U.S. than it does in Canada.
Drug prices are set by Canada’s Patented Medicine Prices Review Board which sets price caps by comparing drug prices across a group of 11 countries. The US used to be included in the formula, but was removed from the group in 2022 — because US drug prices are an insane global outlier.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patented_Medicine_Prices_Review_Board
A group of Pharma companies including Pfizer and Merck have asked the Trump administration to put pressure on Canada. They are accusing the country of unfair trade practices.
It's not just building the factories. The FDA has to minutely inspect the factory and it's procedures, and give it's approval before they can sell anything made there. It takes time for that to happen, especially with the RIFs they're pushing through (which is relevant because they also re-inspect the factories every ... ?5? years and they're having problems keeping up with the current batch of factories).
Health Canada, not FDA. And I'm not 100% sure if it's Health Canada that deals with those inspections or provincial authorities.
Sorry, I mis-read the original comment and thought they were telling about building additional pharmaceutical plants in the States.