MAINE — Patients For Affordable Drugs Now launched a new ad today in Maine’s second congressional district thanking Rep. Jared Golden for fighting to let Medicare negotiate drug prices and asking him to get the job done by voting for the Build Back Better Act. The campaign includes TV and digital ads featuring patient advocate Kris Garcia, who lives with multiple bleeding disorders including hemophilia. It also includes grassroots advocacy, in which patients will write and thank Rep. Golden for his support of Medicare negotiation and ask him to pass the Build Back Better Act, including legislation to lower drug prices for patients.
“Each infusion of medicine that I need to live costs nearly $40,000. But without it, a minor accident can become a medical crisis for me and a financial crisis for my family,” Kris, a father of three based in Denver, explains in the ad. “For millions of Americans like me, this isn’t about politics — this is about life and death.”
Rep. Golden (ME-02) is a champion for allowing Medicare to negotiate lower drug prices. He campaigned on the issue and went on to vote for H.R. 3, a drug pricing measure that would allow Medicare negotiation, in 2019. Since then, he has continued to push for strong drug pricing legislation in an op-ed calling for the reform and a letter calling for inclusion of negotiation in the reconciliation package. Rep. Golden will have the opportunity to vote for passage of the current drug pricing reform legislation in the full package when it heads to the floor.
Watch the ME-02 ad here.
“Jared Golden is fighting to let Medicare negotiate lower drug prices,” the adsays. “Tell Representative Golden, ‘thank you,’ and we’re counting on him to lower drug prices by voting yes for the Build Back Better Act.”
Below is a digital ad also running in the district:
“Rep. Golden has been a real champion for patients from day one. We want him to hear loud and clear: Thank you. A vote for the Build Back Better Act is a vote for patients and lower drug prices, and we have his back,” said David Mitchell, a patient with incurable blood cancer whose drugs carry a list price of more than $900,000 per year and founder of Patients For Affordable Drugs Now. “Medicare negotiation is the most popular part of the president’s Build Back Better Act, and 94 percent of Mainers in Rep. Golden’s district support the policy, which would lower drug prices. It’s time to get it done. ”
On Capitol Hill, Senate and House leadership along with President Biden are working to craft a reconciliation package that includes legislation to let Medicare negotiate and has the support of all Democratic members of Congress. The current House version of the package includes H.R. 3, a comprehensive bill that allows Medicare to negotiate lower prices, which recently advanced out of the Ways and Means Committee.
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WASHINGTON, D.C. — Patients For Affordable Drugs Now launched a six-figure ad campaign today across five key House districts — Lou Correa (CA-46), Scott Peters (CA-52), Josh Gottheimer (NJ-05), Stephanie Murphy (FL-07), and Kathleen Rice (NY-04) — urging the passage of strong Medicare negotiation legislation in the Build Back Better Act. The campaign includes TV and digital ads featuring patient advocate Kris Garcia, who lives with multiple bleeding disorders including hemophilia. It also includes grassroots advocacy, in which patients will write and call their members of Congress directly asking them to pass the Build Back Better Act, including legislation to lower drug prices for patients.
“Each infusion of medicine that I need to live costs nearly $40,000. But without it, a minor accident can become a medical crisis for me and a financial crisis for my family,” Kris, a father of three based in Denver, explains in the ads. “For millions of Americans like me, this isn’t about politics — this is about life and death.”
All five members voted for H.R. 3, a comprehensive bill that allows Medicare to negotiate lower prices, in 2019. This year, however, they introduced a rival drug pricing bill that fails to empower negotiation in Medicare Part D, which accounts for 83 percent of Medicare drug spending, excludes most expensive Part B drugs from negotiation, and has a much higher out-of-pocket cap.
Three of the representatives, Peters (CA-52), Murphy (FL-07), and Rice (NY-04), voted against inclusion of identical legislation in committee votes on the Build Back Better Act last month.
Watch the CA-52 ad here.
Watch the FL-07 ad here.
Watch the NY-04 ad here.
Reps. Gottheimer (NJ-05) and Correa (CA-46) have not yet had the opportunity to vote on the legislation this year, but both signed a letter voicing concerns about partisan drug pricing reforms in May. Rep. Gottheimer has criticized the Democrats’ reform efforts and defended the drug industry, and Rep. Correa enjoys a close relationship with pharma-allied groups opposed to negotiation.
Watch the NJ-05 ad here.
Watch the CA-46 ad here.
“These members of Congress have a clear choice when they vote for the reconciliation package: Stand with patients for real reform that will lower drug prices, or stand with Big Pharma to keep drug prices high,” said David Mitchell, a patient with incurable blood cancer whose drugs carry a list price of more than $900,000 per year and founder of Patients For Affordable Drugs Now. “It is imperative that Reps. Correa, Peters, Gottheimer, Murphy, and Rice seize this moment and deliver on promises to allow Medicare to negotiate lower drug prices for Americans — instead of supporting a weak and ineffective substitute masquerading as negotiation and designed to protect Big Pharma.”
P4ADNow also launched an ad today in Maine’s second congressional district thanking Rep. Jared Golden for fighting to let Medicare negotiate drug prices and asking him to get the job done by voting for the Build Back Better Act. These ads come on the heels of P4ADNow’s Arizona ad launch and are running simultaneously with two nationalads that combat Big Pharma’s lies and scare tactics. These ads are part of a seven-figure campaign that includes digital ads running across a variety of websites and news outlets and congressional outreach, where patient advocates are contacting their members of Congress to demand passage of legislation to allow Medicare to negotiate. P4ADNow’s recent ads can be found here.
On Capitol Hill, Senate and House leadership along with President Biden are working to craft a reconciliation package that includes legislation to let Medicare negotiate and has the support of all Democratic members of Congress. The current House version of the package includes H.R. 3, a comprehensive bill that allows Medicare to negotiate lower prices, which recently advanced out of the Ways and Means Committee.
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WASHINGTON, D.C. — Patients For Affordable Drugs Now launched a six-figure Arizona ad today as part of its campaign to support legislation that would lower drug prices for Americans by allowing Medicare to negotiate. The new ad, which will run on Arizona cable and digital platforms starting today, features Phoenix patient advocate Iesha Meza, who lives with type 1 diabetes and depends on insulin to survive. In addition to the video, Arizona advocates are contacting their members of Congress to support passage of legislation to lower drug prices.
“When you have diabetes, insulin is like water — without it, you’ll die. Now imagine if water cost $300 a vial. I had to ration my insulin, and it almost killed me,” Iesha tells Congress in the ad. “Millions of Americans can’t afford the medicines they need to survive. That shouldn’t happen in our country. We need Congress to finally do something.”
Watch the full ad here.
“Arizonans are counting on their members of Congress to pass strong drug pricing reform that includes Medicare negotiation, which 9 out of 10 of Arizona voters support,” said David Mitchell, a patient with incurable blood cancer whose drugs carry a list price of more than $900,000 per year and founder of Patients For Affordable Drugs Now. “As our ad says, ‘Patients across Arizona need Congress to let Medicare negotiate lower drug prices. The time is now.’”
Both SenatorSinema and SenatorKelly ran on a promise to lower drug prices, and Senator Kelly has sinceadvocated for passing Medicare negotiation legislation by including it in the reconciliation package.
On Capitol Hill, Senate and House leadership along with President Biden are working to craft a reconciliation package that has the support of all Democratic members of Congress. The current House version of the package includes H.R. 3, a comprehensive bill that allows Medicare to negotiate lower prices. Senate leaders are also currently drafting legislation that will allow Medicare to negotiate, which would deliver on the president’s Build Back Better plan under rules of reconciliation.
Patients For Affordable Drugs Now is also continuing to run two nationaladsthat combat Big Pharma’s lies and scare tactics. These ads are part of a seven-figure campaign that includes digital ads running across a variety of websites and news outlets and congressional outreach, where patient advocates are contacting their members of Congress to demand passage of legislation to allow Medicare to negotiate. P4ADNow’s recent ads can be found here.
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WASHINGTON, D.C. — In response to a recent letter to Congress penned by executives from 33 pharmaceutical corporations opposing Medicare negotiation to lower the prices of drugs, Patients For Affordable Drugs Now released a new data set exposing Big Pharma executives’ outrageous paychecks on the backs of American patients. The new data shows that total compensation for Big Pharma CEOs totalled $400 million, the average compensation for Big Pharma CEOs in 2020 was $12.5 million, or 185 times that of the average American household and 420 times the income of Medicare beneficiaries. The report also shows that 19 of 33 companies are based in foreign countries, where they charge less than half what they charge Americans for the same drugs.
The PhRMA letter, filled with false claims about the impact of negotiation, asks Congress to let multinational drug corporations continue to have the power to dictate prices of brand-name drugs in America. They want U.S. citizens to continue supplying almost half of their revenue, underwriting the lion’s share of their compensation. It’s no wonder these CEOs are desperate to block reforms to the system in which American patients and taxpayers shoulder a huge and disproportionate burden. Collectively, the CEOs were paid $400 million last year.
“These multi-millionaire Big Pharma CEOs are tone-deaf. They are literally telling Congress that it should continue to allow them the power to continue to exploit the American people by raising prices ever higher at will,” said David Mitchell, a patient with incurable blood cancer whose drugs carry a list price of more than $900,000 per year and founder of Patients For Affordable Drugs Now. “They want Americans to be their piggy bank to fund unjustified profits and lavish compensation packages. And this comes from companies of which more than half are foreign-based, and that charge far lower prices in their countries abroad.”
View the data set here.
The data set was prepared for and issued on behalf of Patients For Affordable Drugs Now, a community of more than 360,000 patients and allies. It was also distributed to congressional offices today.
Meanwhile, the House Ways And Means Committee recently voted to advance H.R. 3, a comprehensive bill that allows Medicare to negotiate lower prices, as part of the reconciliation package. The Senate Finance Committee is also currently drafting legislation that will allow Medicare to negotiate, which would deliver on the president’s Build Back Better plan under rules of reconciliation.
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| WASHINGTON, D.C. — 160 patient advocates from over 40 states who are leading the drug pricing reform fight with Patients For Affordable Drugs Now sent a letter to Speaker Pelosi today expressing strong support for the inclusion of comprehensive Medicare negotiation in the Build Back Better Act. “Momentum is building in Congress to pass drug pricing legislation that will bring real relief to patients who are struggling to afford prices that are almost four times what patients in other wealthy nations pay for the exact same brand-name drugs,” said Lauren Stanford, a diabetes patient and P4ADNow’s Community Organizing Director who leads work mobilizing a community of more than 360,000 patients and allies. “Patients have waited too long. It’s time for Congress to deliver its promise to lower drug prices and let Medicare negotiate.” The letter was sent following the inclusion of comprehensive legislation that allows Medicare to negotiate lower prices out of the House Ways And Means and Budget Committees, and before it heads to the Rules Committee, where it may be amended prior to a floor vote as part of the reconciliation package. The Senate Finance Committee is also currently drafting legislation that will allow Medicare to negotiate, which would deliver on the president’s Build Back Better plan under rules of reconciliation. Read the full letter below. Patient activist leaders are available to speak to media upon request. |
 September 27, 2021 The Honorable Nancy Pelosi Speaker of the House H-232, The Capitol Washington, D.C. 20515 Dear Speaker Pelosi, As a national community of patients whose lives are directly affected by the high prices of prescription drugs in this country, we write to express our strong support for inclusion of strong and effective drug pricing measures in the Build Back Better Act — most importantly, direct Medicare negotiation. This historic moment and these comprehensive reforms offer a once-in-a-generation opportunity to deliver urgently needed relief to patients like us. Too many of us struggle to afford prices that are almost four times what patients in other wealthy nations pay for the exact same brand-name drugs. Nearly 40 percent of Americans have trouble affording their prescription drugs, and more than 20 percent have had to take on debt or declare bankruptcy due to medication prices in the past year. We are grateful for innovative medicines that help manage our conditions and improve our health. But these statistics demonstrate our lived reality and compel us all to face a fundamental fact: Drugs don’t work if people can’t afford them. The pharmaceutical industry wants us to believe we must choose: Let drug corporations have unfettered pricing power or say farewell to innovative new medicines. But that’s a false choice. Countless analyses have demonstratedthat it is possible to restore balance and achieve affordable medications without sacrificing true innovation. Medicare negotiation that pays the best prices for the best drugs would reward clinically meaningful new drugs and actually stimulate investment in innovation. The Build Back Better Act is complemented by the president’s budget, which would invest more funds in the National Institutes of Health to further stimulate research. Moreover, it is critical to remember that many patients can’t afford existing drugs they require today. As many as 1.1 million Americans will die in the next decade because they can’t afford needed medication. We’re confident that inclusion of comprehensive drug pricing reforms in the reconciliation package will lower prices, save lives, and ensure continued development of innovative new drugs. The provisions under consideration will provide relief to Americans by allowing Medicare to negotiate directly with drug companies for lower prices, capping annual out-of-pocket costs in the Medicare prescription drug program, and stopping pharmaceutical price gouging by penalizing price increases that outpace inflation in both the private and public sectors. Patients have waited too long. It’s time for Congress to deliver its promise to lower drug prices and let Medicare negotiate. Signed: Adeline Toevs, allergies, Buena Vista, CO Allison Wheeler, type 1 diabetes and fibromyalgia, Gaithersburg, MD Amy Miller, systemic lupus erythematosus, Grants Pass, OR Andrea Nowakowski, Crohn’s disease, postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome, depression, and traumatic brain injury, St. John, IN Ann Neilson, chronic dry eye, fibromyalgia, osteoarthritis, back injury resulting in a discectomy and subsequently a lumbar fusion, Madras, OR Anne Goddard, mother of a daughter with type 1 diabetes, Haverhill, MA Ashley Suder, systemic lupus erythematosus, Morgantown, WV Becky Hall, metastatic breast cancer, Capitola, CA Candice Brown, ulcerative colitis, Alexandria, VA Caroline Walsh, Turner syndrome, psoriatic arthritis, and celiac disease, Quincy, MA Catherine Benitz, Sjogren’s syndrome, Greeley, CO Cayley Winters, type 1 diabetes, Battle Creek, MI Chris Burgess, psoriatic arthritis, Chicago, IL Chuck Hurley, myasthenia gravis, Annapolis, MD Clayton McCook, father of a daughter with type 1 diabetes, Edmond, OK Connie Lindy, Xarelto patient, Middletown, DE Dan Kass, diabetes, Mission, KS David Mitchell, multiple myeloma, Bethesda, MD Deanna Robinson, chronic lymphocytic leukemia and type 2 diabetes, Mazeppa, MN Deb Withrow, interstitial cystitis, International Falls, MN Debra Armus, bipolar disorder, Delray Beach, FL Debra Ford, adrenocortical carcinoma, Nanuet, NY Dirk Last, type 1 diabetes, Minneapolis, MN Donald M. Kreis, parent of person with cystic fibrosis, Concord, NH Donna L. Pingrey, chronic pain and pacemaker, Colusa, CA Donna Renfroe, acid reflux and high cholesterol, Atlanta, GA Elaine Pierce, glaucoma, San Antonio, TX Elizabeth Kanfush, blood clotting disorder, Monaca, PA Ella Westerfield, asthma and chronic migraine, Denver, CO Emily Grant, cystic fibrosis, Dallas, TX Gail deVore, type 1 diabetes, Denver, CO Gary Gross, polycythemia vera, Montgomery, OH Genevieve Scott, ulcerative colitis, Charlotte, NC Ginny Boynton, Lambert-Eaton myasthenic syndrome, Mechanicsburg, PA Glenda Smith, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, Kennebunk, ME Hailey Adkisson, mother of Juniper, who has a rare form of epilepsy, Salem, OR Hattie Saltzman, type 1 diabetes, Kansas City, MO Heidi Daniels, diabetes, Arlington, MA Heidi Kendall, chronic myeloid leukemia, Portola Valley, CA Helen Sgarlat, spondylolisthesis, spondylitis, and degenerative disc disease, Forty Fort, PA Iesha Meza, type 1 diabetes, Phoenix, AZ Jacqueline Garibay, ankylosing spondylitis, Austin, TX Jacqueline Gray, caregiver, Portland, OR Jacqueline Trapp, multiple myeloma, Muskego, WI Jacquie Persson, Crohn’s disease, Waterloo, IA Janet Kerrigan, RN, advocate, and ambassador for patients and families dealing with myeloma, Myrtle Beach, SC Janet Schwartz, multiple sclerosis and type 2 diabetes, Newark, DE Jay Gironimi, cystic fibrosis and diabetes, Groton, CT Jayme Thode, spina bifida, Quechee, VT Jesse Nagel, father of a person with type 1 diabetes, Belle Harbor, NY Joan Raider, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, heart failure, atrial fibrillation, lung cancer, stage 4 kidney failure, diabetes, thyroid deficiency, and arthritis, Carrollton, GA Joan Tramontano, gastrointestinal stromal tumor, Venice, FL Joanna Olson, B-cell lymphoma, Beaverton, OR John Meaney, 5q minus syndrome, Bonita, CA Joyce Allex Schultz, multiple myeloma, Ceylon, MN Julia Bartow, Crohn’s disease and gastroparesis, Boston, MA Dr. Julia Blanchette, type 1 diabetes, Cleveland Heights, OH Julie F. Miller, multiple sclerosis and Crohn’s disease, Providence, RI Justine Miner, type 2 diabetes, Bristol, CT Karolina Chorvath, Crohn’s disease, Boston, MA Kat Schroeder, type 1 diabetes, Arlington, VA Katherine Pepper, asthma, diabetes, and gastroparesis, Bellingham, WA Keith Van Houten, father of a son with Duchenne muscular dystrophy, West Bloomfield Township, MI Kelly Shanahan, metastatic breast cancer, South Lake Tahoe, CA Ken Oleksa, multiple myeloma, atrial fibrillation, and glaucoma, Gibsonia, PA Kimberly Ishoy, type 1 diabetes, South Jordan, UT Kirk Tinsley, type 2 diabetes, Bowling Green, KY Kolton Chapman, ulcerative colitis, type 2 diabetes, Moyamoya disease, Pickerington, OH Kristen Smith, mother to children with autism spectrum disorder and type 1 diabetes, Plymouth, MA Kristina Caffrey, Gaucher disease, Albuquerque, NM Kristopher Fabian Garcia, asthma, Denver, CO L. Rose McMahan, asthma and type 2 diabetes, Fairfield, CA Lauren Stanford, type 1 diabetes, Washington, DC Laurie Rozgonyi, chronic diarrhea, Mill Creek, WV Leah Clark, Crohn’s disease, Ann Arbor, MI Lesley A. Nadeau, multiple sclerosis, Royal Oak, MI Lija Greenseid, parent of child with type 1 diabetes, Saint Paul, MN Lisa Trainor, post-traumatic stress disorder and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, Princeton, NJ Lisette Pylant, nerve pain disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder, Andover, MA Liz Westerfield, asthma, Rockland, ME Loree Ulrich, multiple sclerosis, Saint Charles, MO Lori Dumont, sister of a person with type 1 diabetes, Brewer, ME Lori Lee Roden, mother of a person with type 1 diabetes, Madison, WI Lucy Gibson, type 1 diabetes, Washington, DC Lucy Westerfield, irritable bowel syndrome, Washington, DC Luz Lopez, chronic fibromyalgia and cervical and lumbar radiculopathy, Phoenix, AZ Lynn Scarfuto, chronic lymphocytic leukemia, Herkimer, NY Marcus LaCour, type 1 diabetes, Cincinnati, OH Margaret Wright-Mueller, fibromyalgia, pinched nerves, and lupus, Littleton, CO Maria Sanchez, diabetes, Atlanta, GA Mary Mack, heart transplant recipient, Nantucket, MA Matt Navey, Crohn’s disease, Durham, NC Maureen Iten, seizure disorder, non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, and follicular thyroid cancer, Shoreview, MN Meg Jackson-Drage, fibromyalgia, Magna, UT Melissa Evans, asthma and kidney disease, Wilkes-Barre, PA Melissa Fleming, multiple myeloma, Morgantown, WV Michelle Rzeplinski, diabetes, Pottsville, PA Mike Nielsen, husband of wife with hepatitis C, Bend, OR Miriam Wolfe, Crohn’s disease and chronic pain, York, ME Moira McCarthy Stanford, mother of a person with type 1 diabetes, Plymouth, MA Nancy Cartwright, widow of multiple myeloma patient, Las Vegas, NV Natasha Yoder, several conditions, Lancaster, PA Nicole Smith-Holt, mother of son who died from rationing insulin, Richfield, MN Nilton Leon, type 2 diabetes, Santa Ana, CA Noelle Tuominen, mother of two children with type 1 diabetes, Livermore, CA Norma Alicea Berrios, type 2 diabetes, Copperas Cove, TX Pamela Holt, multiple myeloma, Granger, IN Patricia McKenzie, type 2 diabetes, Lithonia, GA Patricia Tenney, chronic allergies and sinusitis, Holyoke, MA Patrick Lewis, obsessive-compulsive disorder, Davenport, IA Paul Kleutghen, primary plasma cell leukemia, Southport, NC Pranav Pinapala, type 1 diabetes, Houston, TX Rachel Burnett, Crohn’s disease, Pittsburgh, PA Rachel Clark, type 1 diabetes, Arlington, VA Rachel Conner, obsessive-compulsive disorder, Nashville, TN Ramae Hamrin, multiple myeloma, Bemidji, MN Randall Barker, type 1 diabetes, Iowa Park, TX Rebecca Hovde, Lambert-Eaton myasthenic syndrome, Wellman, IA Robert Fowler, multiple myeloma, North Ridgeville, OH Robert Krawetzki, diabetes and spinal stenosis, Berlin Heights, OH Robert Porter, multiple myeloma, Mackinaw, IL Ronit Zemel, chronic dry eye, Falls Church, VA Rose Keller, cystic fibrosis, Norwich, VT Russell Saltzman, type 1 diabetes, Kansas City, MO Sa’Ra Skipper, type 1 diabetes, Indianapolis, IN Sabrina Burbeck, mother of son with type 1 diabetes, Old Town, ME Sam McLaren-Fahey, Lyme disease, celiac disease, chronic inflammatory response syndrome, and hypothyroidism, Washington Township, MI Samantha M. Sawyer, spondyloarthritis, Boston, MA Samantha Norris-Dubrul, B.A.A, J.D., Hodgkin’s lymphoma, Macomb Township, MI Samantha Rynearson, Crohn’s disease, North Platte, NE Sandra Killett, multiple myeloma, New York, NY Sanie Mikaelian, blood cancer, San Francisco, CA Sarah Duhart Clarke, type 1 diabetes, hypothyroidism, and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, Vancouver, WA Sascha Martin, type 1 diabetes, Providence, RI Savanna Braun, severe allergic asthma and psoriatic arthritis with spondylitis and enthesitis, The Woodlands, TX Scarlett Woodard, multiple sclerosis, Albany, GA Scott Ensworth, cardiac amyloidosis, Beaver Falls, PA Sharon Brown, pulmonary hypertension, Kingsport, TN Sheila Porter, multiple myeloma, Mackinaw, IL Sheldon Armus, atrial fibrillation, Boynton Beach, FL Sneha Dave, ulcerative colitis, Greenwood, IN Stacey Nagel, mother of a person with type 1 diabetes, Belle Harbor, NY Stahis Panagides, Ph.D., Parkinson’s disease, Bethesda, MD Stephanie Shavers, type 1 diabetes, Olathe, KS Steven Alton, severe migraines, Albuquerque, NM Steven Craig Hadfield, rare blood cancer and type 2 diabetes, Charlotte, NC Sue Knipmeyer, diabetes, Fargo, ND Sue Lee, plaque psoriasis, Crestwood, KY Susan Fariss, metastatic breast cancer, Washington, DC Taylor Dean, erythromelalgia and allodynia, Jackson, MI Therese Humphrey Ball, multiple sclerosis, Ogden Dunes, IN Toni Neill, multiple sclerosis, Petoskey, MI Tony Mills, diabetes, reactive respiratory disease, kidney disease, high blood pressure, and heart and thyroid complications, Rockport, TX Tori Saylor, multiple sclerosis, Washington, DC Travis Paulson, type 1 diabetes, Eveleth, MN Valerie Gacula, rheumatoid arthritis, fibromyalgia, and bipolar disorder, Long Beach, CA Vanessa Ladson, fibromyalgia and lupus, Dover, DE Victoria Stuessel, multiple sclerosis, La Puente, CA Vivian Fiorito, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, Benton, AR Xanadu Roque, type 1 diabetes, Gainesville, FL CC: The Honorable Joseph R. Biden, President of the United States The Honorable Richard Neal, Chair, House Ways and Means Committee The Honorable Frank Pallone, Chair, House Energy and Commerce Committee The Honorable Charles Schumer, Majority Leader, United States Senate The Honorable Ron Wyden, Chair, Senate Finance Committee |
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WASHINGTON, D.C. — As Congress considers solutions to lower prescription drug prices, patient advocates across the country are voicing their support for allowing Medicare to negotiate lower drug prices on behalf of Americans. With brand name drug prices in the United States four times higher than the prices in similar countries and one in three adults not taking their medicine as prescribed because of cost, it is clear that we need comprehensive drug pricing reform now.
No one understands the need for lower prices better than patient advocates, the people living with pharmaceutical companies’ high prices. They know there is a clear answer for unaffordable drug prices — strong Medicare negotiation legislation would deliver relief patients so desperately need. From letters-to-the-editor to social media to advocacy tools, patients are adamant that Congress act now!
Below is a highlight of what patient advocates are saying right now about Medicare negotiation.
Patients in their local opinion sections:
Here are some patient LTEs and op-eds that call on Congress to allow Medicare to negotiate.
Letter: Fearmongering from Big Pharma, Don Kreis, Parent of person who lives with Cystic fibrosis, Concord, NewHampshire
Concord Monitor, 9/6/21
My 19-year-old daughter lives with cystic fibrosis. The routine set of prescriptions she needs are priced at roughly $160,000 per year … Big Pharma is fearmongering because they know how important access to medications is for people like her. But allowing Medicare to negotiate drug prices wouldn’t limit access at all, it would do the opposite.
Arizonans like me are fed up with high drug prices, and it’s time to fix that, Iesha Meza, Type 1 diabetes, Phoenix, Arizona
Arizona Mirror, 8/24/21
Our lawmakers in Washington, D.C., need to lower prescription drug costs urgently, so that Arizonans and Americans across the country don’t have to continue making difficult choices and impossible tradeoffs between paying for our prescription drugs or other necessary essentials.
Letter: Let Medicare negotiate drug prices, Jacquie Persson, Crohn’s disease, Waterloo, Iowa
The Courier, 8/22/21
If I knew that even without insurance, if the prescription that I needed was within reach, I would no longer have to stress about the “what ifs” … I know that Sens. Charles Grassley and Joni Ernst and Rep. Ashley Hinson want patients like me to be able to afford the medications I need. It’s time to allow Medicare to negotiate.
Letter: Manchin and Capito need to back Medicare drug-price negotiations, Ashley Suder, Systemic lupus, Morgantown, West Virginia
Charleston Gazette-Mail, 5/10/21
In the past, I’ve had to stop taking it altogether, patch together funding or switch from critical drugs that my doctors prescribed me to take to less-effective medications… Thankfully, the House of Representatives has reintroduced a bill that would allow Medicare to directly negotiate for lower drug prices. This is a big deal.
Don’t believe these ads, Tammy de la Cruz, Chronic inflammatory polyneuropathy, North Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas Sun, 9/2/21
Medicare negotiation wouldn’t limit access for patients, it would do the opposite. This policy would make sure patients can access the medications we need at prices we can afford.
Patients on Social Media:
Here are some posts from patient advocates sharing their experience with high drug prices and demanding reform:
Patient Advocacy Tools:
Through MedicareNegotiation.org, patients are contacting their members of Congress to demand passage of legislation to allow Medicare to negotiate.
Ramae Hamrin, Multiple myeloma, Bemidji, Minnesota: “In 2018, I was diagnosed with an incurable blood cancer called multiple myeloma. I rely on a daily oral chemotherapy drug called Revlimid to keep me alive. At the beginning of this year, the price of this drug went up by 4.5 percent, bringing it to over $15,000 each month. There is a clear answer to these high drug prices — allowing Medicare to negotiate lower drug prices so that people like me don’t have to deplete their life savings, cash out their 401(k)s, and sell their homes just to be able to afford the drugs that keep them alive.”
Kris Garcia, Hemophilia, Denver, Colorado: “Having multiple bleeding disorders, including hemophilia, leaves me in a constant position of uncertainty. Any emergency can quickly turn into both a health and financial crisis. If Medicare were allowed to negotiate lower drug prices, patients like me would be given financial relief from the burdensome cost of prescription drugs. I know all too well that drugs don’t work if people cannot afford them, and it is long overdue that Medicare be able to negotiate for lower drug prices for patients.”
Lynn Scarfuto, Chronic lymphocytic leukemia, Herkimer, New York: “Helping cancer patients find ways to pay for their medication was my job. When I was diagnosed with cancer, it became my life. But the medicine I depend on is priced at nearly $15,000 every month. What happens to millions of Americans like me who can’t afford the drugs we so desperately need. Congress, the opportunity to act is now.”
Watch in video form HERE.
Patricia Mckenzie, High blood pressure, Insulin-dependent diabetes, Lithonia, Georgia: “People have to choose between eating and their medications. They have to choose between life and death. And that should not be a choice. It is long past time for Congress to pass legislation to allow Medicare to negotiate fair prescription drug prices on behalf of people like me.”
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WASHINGTON, D.C. — Patients For Affordable Drugs Now launched new ads today calling out Congressman Scott Peters (CA-52) and Congresswoman Kathleen Rice (NY-04) for turning their backs on patients and attempting to block legislation that would allow Medicare to negotiate lower drug prices on behalf of Americans. The ads, which launched after the representatives voted against H.R. 3 in the House Energy and Commerce Committee markup of the reconciliation package, feature multiple sclerosis patient Therese Ball who calls out the members for choosing Big Pharma over patients. Each ad includes a 6-figure spend and will run in CA-52 and NY-04 on cable TV and digital platforms through the week of September 27.
“Congressman Peters and Congresswoman Rice buckled and turned their backs on patients in this week’s Energy and Commerce markup. We will not stand by while these representatives attempt to block effective Medicare negotiation legislation that would bring relief 90 percent of Americans are demanding,” said David Mitchell, a patient with incurable blood cancer whose drugs carry a list price of more than $900,000 per year and founder of Patients For Affordable Drugs Now. “The House Ways and Means Committee stood strong with patients and voted to advance H.R. 3 in the reconciliation package. We look forward to the full House and Senate enacting effective Medicare negotiation legislation in the reconciliation package that will ensure patients get the innovation we need at prices we can afford.”
On Wednesday, the House Ways and Means committee reported out the comprehensive provisions of H.R. 3 for inclusion in the $3.5 trillion reconciliation package this year. The Ways and Means Committee vote followed a tie vote in the Energy and Commerce Committee that occurred after three Democrats failed to support the drug pricing provisions. The Ways and Means Committee’s favorable report ensures Medicare negotiation will be incorporated into the reconciliation package that moves to the House floor.
“The medications I need to live are priced at over $7,000 every month. I can’t afford these prices —I don’t know how anyone can,” multiple sclerosis patient Therese Ball of Ogden Dunes, IN, says in the ads. “It makes me so angry that members of Congress are choosing Big Pharma over patients — it’s unforgivable.”
Watch the ad in CA-52 here.
Watch the ad in NY-04 here.
Rep. Peters touted his support for H.R. 3 in 2019. But after receiving over $239,000 in contributions from the pharmaceutical and health products industry, he flip-flopped to oppose the bill, even threatening to derail his party’s budget bill if it includes the legislation. In his district, 9 out of 10 voters support allowing Medicare to negotiate lower drug prices, and nearly 8 out of 10 voters think drug prices are unreasonable.
“Scott Peters just voted against a bill to let Medicare negotiate lower prices for patients, siding with drug companies so they can keep charging us the highest prices in the world,” the ad in CA-52 says. “Tell Congressman Peters: stop selling us out to drug companies.”
Rep. Rice has supported HR 3 and campaigned on lowering drug prices and taking on Big Pharma, but broke her promise to patients and flipped her position just days before the vote in Energy and Commerce. In her district, 9 out of 10 voters support allowing Medicare to negotiate lower drug prices, and nearly 8 out of 10 voters think drug prices are unreasonable.
“Kathleen Rice promised to take on the drug companies and lower prescription prices — instead, she’s standing with Big Pharma to keep prices high,” says the ad in NY-04. “Tell Congresswoman Rice, put lower prices for patients before drug company profits.”
Simultaneously, Patients For Affordable Drugs Now is running two national adsto combat Big Pharma lies and scare tactics. These ads are part of a 7-figure campaign that includes digital ads that will run across a variety of websites and news outlets and congressional outreach, where patient advocates will contact their members of Congress to demand passage of legislation to allow Medicare to negotiate. P4ADNow’s recent ads can be found here.
Patients For Affordable Drugs Now is the only independent national patient organization focused exclusively on policy changes to lower prescription drug prices. It does not accept funding from any organizations that profit from the development or distribution of prescription drugs.
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