Rep. Kurt Schrader’s loss in his primary election sends a clear message to Congress: Voters want effective action to lower drug prices. “It is a wake-up call across the country on the importance of taking steps to hold down the cost of medicine,” said Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden. Senator Manchin confirmed that he and Leader Schumer are in conversation about moving forward a reconciliation package centering around drug pricing reforms. Americans are clear: Congress must pass drug pricing legislation now to lower costs for patients and taxpayers. Voters are watching. — (The Washington Post, Axios)
Big Pharma continued to make headlines this week for its unethical practices to extract maximum profits from patients and taxpayers. Drug giant AbbVie is facing a lawsuit for violating anti-kickback laws by providing doctors who prescribed its blockbuster drug Humira with registered nurses acting in the best interest of the company, and a class-action suit alleges that GSK blocked generics from entering the market for decades by shifting patients onto reformulations of inhalers with the same active ingredients. A new Oxfam report also describes how taxpayer-funded COVID-19 vaccines have brought in massive profits for drug companies and minted new billionaires in the process. Over and over again, the drug industry has shown it can’t be trusted to do the right thing — and why government reforms are necessary to protect patients from the abuses of Big Pharma. — (FiercePharma, FiercePharma, United Press International)
One more thing: As the Senate works on a reconciliation bill with drug pricing reforms, states are moving ahead to protect their residents from high prices. Maryland’s prescription drug affordability board — the first of its kind in the nation — began its work to establish upper payment limits this week, and a New Jersey bill to establish a drug affordability board passed a critical committee vote in the state Assembly. Thank you to all state lawmakers fighting for patients!
Have a great weekend, everyone!
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The following statement was issued by David Mitchell, a cancer patient and founder of Patients For Affordable Drugs Now, following Jamie McLeod-Skinner’s primary victory in Oregon’s 5th Congressional District:
“Drug price reform figured prominently in Oregon’s 5th Congressional District primary, where Rep. Kurt Schrader tried to reinvent himself as pro-patient and anti-Big Pharma when he in fact led the effort to weaken legislation allowing Medicare negotiation. Voters saw through his lies, and for the first time in 42 years, an incumbent member of Congress lost his job in an Oregon primary. The result sends a clear message to Democrats and Republicans alike: Americans want Congress to pass legislation to lower drug prices, and those who stand in the way or fail to deliver on their promises will be held accountable by voters at the ballot box. More talk won’t do. Fake solutions won’t do. No more excuses. Right now, the Senate can deliver on its promises; the votes are there. The Senate must use its power under reconciliation now to enact the comprehensive reforms to lower drug prices already passed by the House of Representatives.”
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ICYMI: Roundup Of Overwhelming Momentum To Advance Comprehensive Drug Pricing Reforms By Memorial Day
Members Of Congress And President Biden Push For Lower Rx Prices
P4ADNow launched a six-figure ad campaign with twonew video ads featuring patients who have struggled with the high prices of their prescription drugs calling on Congress to lower drug prices. Meg Jackson-Drage, a Utah patient who lives with fibromyalgia and is unable to afford her medication Lyrica, also shared her story in a Scripps segment and a letter in The Salt Lake Tribune. She explains, “These reforms would make it possible for me to afford my medications without constantly worrying about how I will be able to make ends meet.” AARP hosted a “People’s Hearing” where seniors described how high drug prices are hurting them, Protect Our Care ran new ads thanking members of Congress who are fighting for the drug pricing provisions, and the Campaign for a Family Friendly Economy released a storybook of patients sharing how high drug prices have harmed their families’ health and financial well-being. Patientsacrossthecountry continued to share their stories in the news and in letters-to-the editor.
Majority Leader Schumer and Senator Manchin are continuing conversations to put together a reconciliation bill with the House-passed prescription drug pricing reforms, and members of Congress are doubling down on their commitment to lower drug prices. Senator Cortez Masto penned an op-ed explaining how Nevadans will benefit from the reforms, including Medicare negotiation, and Senator Sinema vowed to “keep working to lower costs for prescription drugs while fueling innovation.” Twenty House Democrats in competitive districts also sent a letter to Leader Schumer and Senator Wyden urging them to advance a reconciliation bill with the drug pricing reforms. “Let’s make good on this promise,” they write. “We have the votes and, more importantly, we have the backing of the American people.” — (Politico, Reno Gazette-Journal, Senator Sinema, Rep. Wild)
2. This Is Why We’re Fighting
Advocates ramped up their calls for drug pricing reforms this week. Meg Jackson-Drage, a Utah patient who lives with fibromyalgia and is unable to afford her medication Lyrica, shared her story in a Scripps segment and a letter in The Salt Lake Tribune. “These reforms would make it possible for me to afford my medications without constantly worrying about how I will be able to make ends meet,” Meg writes. Protect Our Care released new ads thanking members of Congress who are fighting for the drugpricing provisions, and AARP hosted a “People’s Hearing” where seniors described how high drug prices are hurting them. “My doctor has repeatedly prescribed medications, and then I go to the pharmacy and have to decline them due to how much it would cost me,” says Kitty Ruderman, who lives with high cholesterol and osteoporosis. “Congress needs to bring some relief from this madness now.” — (Scripps Media, The Salt Lake Tribune, Protect Our Care, AARP)
3. Profits Over Patients
Two new reports this week shed light on how drug companies exploit patients for profit. Researchers describe how manufacturers of inhalers have gamed the patent system to win monopoly pricing power and stave off competition for decades — of the 62 inhalers approved by the FDA over 35 years, only one had a new mechanism of action. Newly released internal documents also reveal the unethical behaviors that pharmaceutical companies engage in to increase prescriptions of their drugs. There’s no limit to what Big Pharma will do to grow its bottom line — and patients are paying with their lives. — (Endpoints News, ProPublica)
Have a great weekend, everyone!
Big Pharma may want us to think the odds are stacked against us, but Rich Strike proved that no odds are too great to overcome.
Welcome to the Week in Review.
1. Time To Reset The System
On Tuesday, President Biden delivered a speech on inflation and described drug pricing reforms, including Medicare negotiation, as a key part of his plan to lower costs for Americans. Drug companies charge Americans over three times what people in other wealthy countries pay for the same brand-name drugs, resulting in sky-high costs for patients and taxpayers. A new AARP analysis found that manufacturers of themost costly drugs for Medicare Part D recouped an average of five times the development costs over a five-year period. To reset the rigged drugpricing system, lawmakers must tackle the headwaters of the problem — list prices of brand-name drugs — and allow Medicare to negotiate. Senators, you have the votes to pass drug pricing reforms through reconciliation. It’s time to act before the clock runs out. — (Spectrum News, AARP, HowStuffWorks)
2. In Focus: A Texas Patient’s Story
P4ADNow patient advocate Jacqueline Garibay shared her story with high drug prices in a Spectrum News Austin segment on the fight for drugpricing reform. “It was difficult for me to justify paying $4,000 a month, almost, for medication,” said Jacqueline, a 20-year-old college student who lives with ankylosing spondylitis and has had to forgo her biologic drug due to its high cost. “Without this, there’s a huge possibility that I lose mobility entirely.” Jacqueline and other patients are urging theSenate to advance the House-passed drug pricing reforms by Memorial Day. Patients aren’t giving up this fight for our lives and our future. — (Spectrum News)
3. Let Medicare Negotiate. Now.
This week, Senator Tammy Duckworth and advocacyleaders called on Congress to pass Medicare negotiation legislation to help patients afford their medications. “As a Veteran, I’m able to afford the medications I need in part because the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs can negotiate with drug companies to make my prescriptions more affordable. But millions of other Americans don’t have that option,” explains Senator Duckworth. “Congress should … allow Medicare to negotiate lower drugprices, saving us money and making it easier for seniors to afford life-saving medicine,” writes Heather O’Loughlin, co-director of the Montana Budget and Policy Center. “We need our elected representatives to support price negotiations that actually stop the drug corporations from charging whatever they want and raising prices at will,” says Sue Dinsdale, director of the Iowa Citizen Action Network. — (The Southern Illinoisan, Missoula Current, The Gazette)
Have a great weekend, everyone!
Welcome to the Week in Review.
1. New Patient Ads: “It’s Time To Get It Done”
On Tuesday, P4ADNow launched a six-figure ad campaign with two new video ads featuring patients who have struggled with the high prices of their prescription drugs calling on Congress to lower drug prices. This announcement is part of the “Push For Lower Rx Prices” launched last week by over 70 organizations pressing the Senate to make meaningful progress on comprehensive drug pricing reforms, including Medicare negotiation, by Memorial Day. “The medication I need to treat my MS is nearly $7,500 a month. I’m on Medicare, and I still can’t afford that,” says patient advocate Lisa from Detroit in one ad. Jacqueline, a college student and patient advocate from Austin who lives with ankylosing spondylitis, says in the other ad, “If Congress doesn’t lower drug prices now, a whole ’nother generation of us will suffer.” — (Politico)
2. Undeniable Momentum
Voters and legislators continue to show support for the comprehensive drug pricing reforms in Congress. A new poll released on Thursday by Data For Progress shows strong support for President Biden’s investment package, including bringing down the cost of prescription drugs. The poll finds that large majorities (over 80 percent) of Democrats and Republicans support the comprehensive drug price provisions being considered by the Senate, which include allowing Medicare to negotiate lower drug prices. Senators Hirano, Schatz, Bennet, Murray and Whitehouse all voiced the urgent need for lower drug prices this week, and President Biden again touted Medicare negotiation as part of his plan to deliver lower prices to Americans. The momentum is here – Americansneed lower costs, and prescription drug pricing reform is top of mind. Congress, let’s get it done. — (Data For Progress, Maui Now, Concord Monitor, PBS NewsHour)
3. Tweetorial: Unaffordable Cancer Drugs
Vanderbilt professor and health services researcher Stacie Dusetzina tweeted a poignant thread detailing her new paper in The New England Journal of Medicine about the cost of cancer drugs for Medicare beneficiaries. Dusetzina explains that the difference between affording and not affording cancer treatment in Medicare is whether your cancer drugs are pills covered through Part D or infusions covered by Part B. This system is arbitrary and inequitable, which is why Dusetzina implores Congress to pass pricing reforms in Part D that lower prices and cap out-of-pocket costs. — (The New England Journal of Medicine, Twitter)
One more thing: P4ADNow submitted comments to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) this week describing the ways that the opaque business practices of pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) may contribute to higher prices for patients and calling for a thoroughgoing investigation into PBM business practices.
Have a great weekend, everyone!
Our #1 overall pick to lower drug prices? Medicare negotiation.
Welcome to the Week in Review.
1. The Push For Lower Rx Prices
On Tuesday, over 70 organizations representing patients, consumers, seniors, unions, employers, physicians, nurses, and disease advocacy groups joined Senators Amy Klobuchar and Catherine Cortez Masto to launch the “Push For Lower Rx Prices.” The campaign calls on the Senate to advance a reconciliation package with the House-passed drug pricing provisions by Memorial Day to deliver relief to patients across the country. “After graduating, I want to go to law school. But my dreams and independence are threatened by having to constantly worry about affording my treatment,” said Jacqueline Garibay, an ankylosing spondylitis patient from Texas who spoke at the event. “I want the Senate to understand that passing comprehensive drug pricing reform will give me and millions of others peace of mind and the ability to pursue our dreams without worrying about whether the price of our drugs will stand in the way.” — (Common Dreams)
2. Voters Demand Medicare Negotiation
A new survey conducted by a bipartisan research team demonstrates overwhelming and unwavering support among voters for Congress to take action to lower the prices of prescription drugs. The poll finds that 83 percent of voters back Medicare negotiation and 77 percent are in favor of limiting annual drug price increases, with support across political parties. Nearly 80 percent of respondents say the pharmaceutical industry can live with slightly lower profits and still provide the innovation patients need. In a country deeply divided, Americans are unified on the issue of drug prices. Congress must pass this game-changing legislation now. — (STAT)
3. Read Our Stories
The Campaign for a Family Friendly Economy, the Main Street Alliance, and P4ADNow released a storybook this week of patients sharing how high drug prices have harmed their families’ health and financial well-being. P4ADNow advocates Brenda Dickason, Marcus LaCour, and Ashley Suder are among the patients featured in the storybook. “I shouldn’t have to spend my retirement praying that my small business sales go well so that I can finally purchase the EpiPen that could save my life,” shares Brenda, who lives with asthma and allergies. “I’m thankful I have insulin to help keep me alive, but it is worthless if we cannot afford it,” explains Marcus, a type 1 diabetes patient. “It’s wrong that I live paycheck to paycheck and in constant fear of losing my medications while Big Pharma rakes in profits,” says Ashley, who lives with lupus. — (Campaign for a Family Friendly Economy)
On Friday, President Biden urged Congress to lower costs for families by passing the package of drug pricing reforms that includes Medicare negotiation. Drug pricing reform consistently ranks as one of Americans’ most important priorities, and the package before the Senate now would reset the drug pricing system to make it work better for all Americans. “Today, 1 in 4 Americans who take prescription drugs struggle to afford them. … Many people use over-the-counter drugs instead or cut pills in half because they can’t afford them. There are others who simply don’t fill their prescriptions at all,” President Biden said. “For God’s sake, this is the United States of America. What are we doing? It’s simply wrong.” — (President Biden, HuffPost)
2. We’re Not Buying Big Pharma’s Lies
This week, P4ADNow set the record straight by debunking five of the drug industry’s lies about innovation, access, COVID-19 vaccines, out-of-pocket costs, and partisan priorities and shed light on the truth about what the drug pricing reforms would mean for patients. “Despite Big Pharma’s record spending on lobbying and dark money campaigns to block the drug pricing reforms, patients know the provisions will allow for the innovation we need at prices we can afford, increase access to drugs, continue funding for COVID-19 vaccine development, and save lives,” says P4ADNow founder David Mitchell. “Americans are depending on Congress to fulfill its promise and pass comprehensive drug pricing reforms now.” — (P4ADNow)
3. “Lives On The Line”
Patients, seniors, and advocates wrote to their local publications this week explaining why Americans need Congress to pass Medicare negotiation. “I often think of all the things I could have invested in to better my life if not for the financial weight of drug costs holding me down,” shares diabetes patient Kristine Shachinger. “I am fortunate that skipping my medication hasn’t taken my life yet, but many Americans are not as lucky,” writes multiple sclerosis patient Sharon Hendrix. “I urge Congress to support Biden’s plan to lower drug costs. When there are lives on the line, we can’t waste time.” — (The Kansas City Star, Concord Monitor, Daily Montanan, Las Vegas Sun)
4. The Patents Behind Monopoly Prices
The U.S. patent system must be reformed so that patients are able to get the innovation we need at prices we can afford, writes The New York Times editorial board. As it stands, the broken system allows drug companies to obtain frivolous patents in order to block cheaper competitors from coming to market. From patent reform to Medicare negotiation, there are real steps we can take to prevent and lower pharma’s monopoly prices on behalf of patients across the country. It’s time for substantive action. — (The New York Times)
5. Another Drug Industry Game
In an op-ed for the Los Angeles Times, author Elisabeth Rosenthal explains how copay assistance programs allow drug manufacturers to profit off patients under the guise of benevolence. Patients rely on these coupons to afford expensive medications while drug companies collect on the astronomical prices charged to the patients’ insurance companies, resulting in increased cost-shifting and rising premiums. It’s another pharma trick to continue exploiting the system while trying to preserve their reputation. Don’t fall for it. — (Los Angeles Times)
One more thing: On Tuesday, April 26, over 70 organizations will join together to launch the campaign “Push For Lower Rx Prices” to call on the Senate to advance a reconciliation package that includes drug pricing reforms by Memorial Day. Please RSVP to [email protected] to attend the press conference.
