Enough said.
Welcome to the Week in Review.
- “It’s Unforgivable”
- On Friday, P4ADNow launched a campaign addressing four members of the House of Representatives — Reps. Hudson, Peters, Schrader, and Valadao — who are threatening to block Medicare negotiation bill H.R. 3. Along with digital ads and grassroots advocacy, the campaign includes video ads featuring Therese Ball, a multiple sclerosis patient and retired nurse. P4ADNow’s campaign directed towards the 117th Congress, first launched in May, also expanded this week to add two more House districts and highlights blood cancer patient Steven Hadfield’s story in new ads. — (The Washington Post)
2. The People Are Behind You
- P4ADNow also launched a campaign this week encouraging two members of the Senate Finance Committee — Senators Carper and Menendez — to push for a bill that includes Medicare negotiation. “The medications I need to live are priced at over $7,000 every month,” Therese says in the video ads. “I can’t afford these prices. I had to ration and skip doses.” Ads encouraging Senators Bennet and Casey to support the legislation were suspended after both senators reaffirmed their continued commitment to fighting for Medicare negotiation in the Senate Finance Committee’s drug pricing bill. — (P4ADNow)
3. The Hidden Hand
- P4AD released a new report detailing the often-undisclosed relationships between patient organizations and drug corporations that create conflicts of interest when it comes to drug pricing reforms. The report examines a sample of 15 national patient organizations, four patient assistance charities, and four astroturf groups. “Patients and the public need to know that the pharmaceutical industry’s financial power may influence the public policies for which these organizations advocate, especially on the issue of drug pricing,” the report says. As H.R. 3 and other drug pricing legislation gain momentum in Congress, “policymakers, elected officials, and the news media must be made aware that when these groups act and speak, the influence of Big Pharma money may actually be at work behind the scenes.” — (Politico)
4. Profits Over Patients
- A government report found that some prescription drugs with the highest advertising spending were also among those with the highest Medicare expenditures. Drug companies pour billions of dollars each year into advertising concentrated on brand-name drugs with monopoly pricing. It’s no surprise that pharma wants more patients on the most profitable drugs — we must allow Medicare to negotiate lower prices. — (Axios)
5. Case Study: Antiparasitics
- A new analysis revealed that skyrocketing prices of antiparasitic treatments were associated with fewer patients taking the drugs they needed. Between 2010 and 2018, the average price of drugs recommended for treating pinworm, a parasitic infection, increased from $14.81 to $930. At the same time, the percentage of patients with a pinworm diagnosis receiving the recommended treatment dropped from 81 percent to 28 percent. Too many patients are sacrificing their quality of care due to high drug prices. We deserve better than this. — (Healio)