BOSTON (AP) – Citing increased concerns about the quality of drugs entering the United States from Canada, federal authorities have stepped up seizures of the prescriptions and sent strongly worded legal warnings to consumers who have ordered the discounted drugs.

“What we’re trying to do is protect the public from unsafe medications,” said Lynn Hollinger, spokeswoman for U.S. Customs and Border Protection. “It was a growing problem we felt was of concern to the American public.”

The government crackdown marks a shift in policy for the Bush administration, which has rarely acted against individuals who buy drugs from Canada, reports The Boston Sunday Globe.

The stricter enforcement policy began Nov. 17, and applies only to mail-order shipments, not to U.S. citizens who cross into Canada to pick up their drugs, Hollinger said.

“The implication is that I have done something illegal, unpatriotic. I think it’s ludicrous,” she told the Globe.

Some members of Congress agree.

U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Florida, said at least 13,000 packages containing pharmaceuticals were intercepted during the first months of the campaign. Nelson is an opponent of the enforcement policy and is among a group of congressional critics from both parties who said they suspect the seizures are part of an effort by the administration to steer seniors to its new Medicare prescription drug plan.

Hollinger denies that. “There’s absolutely no connection with this enforcement of federal law with Medicare Part D at all,” she said.