Patient Advocate Implores Congress To Pass H.R. 3 In Testimony Before House Energy And Commerce Subcommittee On Health

WASHINGTON, D.C. — In testimony before the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health today, patient advocate Therese Ball will tell her story and issue an urgent call for passage of H.R. 3 to help her and millions of Americans by lowering drug prices. 

Ball, a grandmother, retired nurse, and patient living with multiple sclerosis, will share her experience of being unable to afford the medications she needs to keep her MS under control. The legislative hearing, “Negotiating a Better Deal: Legislation to Lower the Cost of Prescription Drugs,” will review a variety of bills, and Ball will explain why she supports H.R. 3, which would lower drug prices by allowing Medicare to negotiate on behalf of all Americans. 

“I had a front-row seat to the horrifying reality of our drug pricing system: Drugs don’t work if people can’t afford them,” Ball of Ogden Dunes, Indiana, will explain to the committee. 

Ball was diagnosed with MS in 2003 and was prescribed the medication Copaxone to manage her symptoms. When Copaxone first came to market in 1997, it was priced at $769 a month. Currently, that same monthly supply costs $7,114 — almost 10 times higher.

“I was completely overwhelmed by the price tag, and no matter how many times I crunched the numbers, I couldn’t make it work,” Ball will describe her experience in 2017. “So I made the terrifying decision to go without the drug. The health consequences were immediate and severe. I lost my memory and my quality of life suffered tremendously.”

Ball will explain that H.R. 3, the Elijah E. Cummings Lower Drug Costs Now Act, would help beneficiaries like her by allowing Medicare to negotiate for lower prices on expensive drugs like Copaxone. MS is a progressive disease, meaning Ball will continue to need new and innovative medications to keep her condition at bay. Ball will say that Big Pharma’s argument that any curbs on its unilateral pricing power will cause important innovation to grind to a halt is simply not true.  

“Drug companies have taken this idea of innovation — this hope — and turned it into an ultimatum for patients. They say we must let them charge whatever prices they want, or we can say farewell to future cures. But that’s a false choice,” Ball will say. 

“I urge you to vote in support of H.R. 3 — patients have waited long enough,” she will conclude. 

H.R. 3., which was recently reintroduced, would allow Medicare to negotiate lower prices on behalf of all Americans, prevent price gouging, and direct more money to the National Institutes of Health for critical research to ensure innovation and new drug development. If passed, H.R. 3 would both bring relief to patients and save nearly half a trillion dollars for taxpayers by restoring balance to our drug pricing system and curbing pharma’s unilateral pricing power. 

The hearing begins today at 11:30 AM ET. Read a copy of Therese Ball’s testimony here. 

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WASHINGTON, D.C. — The following statement was issued today by David Mitchell, a cancer patient and founder of Patients For Affordable Drugs Now, commenting on President Biden’s speech to a joint session of Congress:

“Tonight, President Biden reaffirmed his strong support for legislation to lower drug prices through Medicare negotiation. Now, Congress should move quickly to pass H.R. 3 and incorporate it into the American Families Plan to — as the president said — ‘lower prescription drug costs for everyone.’

“The president’s remarks were a call to arms for millions of patients who are struggling under the burden of high drug prices to support congressional leaders to get the bill passed. It is time to stand strong against an industry that says it will be ‘rolling the tanks … to push back against policy proposals adverse to the industry’s interests.’ Congress needs our backing to restore balance so Americans get the innovation we need at prices we can afford. As the president said, ‘Let’s do it now.’” 

Background: 

• In President Biden’s address to a joint session of Congress, he strongly reaffirmed his support for lower drug prices through Medicare negotiation: 
  • “Let’s do what we talked about for all the years I was down here in this body, in Congress. Let’s give Medicare the power to save hundreds of billions of dollars by negotiating lower drug prescription prices. By the way, it won’t just help people on Medicare – it’ll lower prescription drug costs for everyone. And the money we save, which is billions of dollars, can go to strengthening the Affordable Care Act and expand Medicare coverage benefits without costing taxpayers an additional penny. It’s within our power to do it. Let’s do it now.”
• The president affirmed his support to let Medicare negotiate in the American Families Plan, which states, “President Biden has a plan to … lower prescription drug costs for everyone by letting Medicare negotiate prices.” 
• President Biden promised on the campaign trail that he would lower drug prices by allowing Medicare to negotiate.
• Last week, the House of Representatives reintroduced H.R. 3, the Lower Drug Costs Now Act, a bill that would: 
  • Allow Medicare to negotiate for lower drug prices and extend lower prices to all Americans with public or private sector insurance.
  • Limit the negotiated price of drugs in Medicare to no more than 120 percent of the average of six other OECD nations.
  • Limit annual out-of-pocket costs for Medicare beneficiaries to no more than $2,000.
  • End drug company price gouging by penalizing drug companies that increase prices in Medicare Parts B and D faster than the rate of inflation. 
  • Support innovation and new drug development by investing some of the expected savings into the world-class research being conducted at the National Institutes of Health.
• With Medicare negotiation, patients will pay less for their prescriptions and lives will be saved. 
  • Right now, more than 1.1 million Medicare patients could die over the next decade because they cannot afford to pay for their prescriptions. 
  • If Medicare were empowered to directly negotiate prices with drug companies, there could be 94,000 fewer deaths annually.
• Medicare negotiation is very popular — Americans want reform. 
  • Nearly 90 percent of voters support Medicare negotiation, including 92 percent of Democrats and 85 percent of Republicans. 
  • More than 60 percent of small business owners believe that Medicare should be able to negotiate for lower prices on behalf of Americans. 
  • The vast majority of voters agree that addressing high drug prices should be a top priority for President Biden and Congress.

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WASHINGTON, D.C. — Patients For Affordable Drugs Now launched a new campaign today highlighting President Biden’s campaign promises to lower prescription drug prices and offering to work with the administration to get it done.

“Patients are depending on President Biden to deliver on his campaign promises to lower prescription drug prices,” said David Mitchell, a patient with incurable cancer and founder of Patients For Affordable Drugs Now. “The president has been unequivocal: He stated on Sept. 18, 2020 in Hermantown, MN, ‘I have a clear plan. I guarantee I’ll lower prices in America for drugs by allowing Medicare to negotiate drug prices.’”

The campaign launches today with a new ad running on TV and digital platforms, highlighting President Biden’s promise to allow Medicare to negotiate for lower prices. The campaign will also include social media, patient mobilization, and other activities. 

“Americans are struggling, paying almost four times what patients in other wealthy nations pay for the same drugs,” Mitchell continued. “We must curb the unilateral power of drug corporations to dictate prices and restore balance to ensure we get the innovation and affordability we need.”

The ad comes just a day after the House of Representatives reintroduced H.R. 3, a bill to allow Medicare to negotiate, prevent price gouging, and direct more money to the National Institutes of Health for critical research. Speaker Pelosi has called on the president to include H.R. 3 in his upcoming legislative proposals. 

“The message from patients is clear — now is the time, Mr. President. We know you won’t let us down,” Mitchell said.

The full ad can be viewed here. 

TRANSCRIPT:

PRESIDENT BIDEN: Overwhelmingly, overwhelmingly, the American people think drug prices are too high.
SUPER: “Overwhelmingly, Overwhelmingly, the American people think drug prices are too high.”
VO: Mr. President, you’re right.
SUPER: Mr. President. You’re right.
VO: Americans pay almost four times what people around the world pay for the same prescriptions.
SUPER: Americans pay four times the price
VO: Too many patients have to skip doses to pay their bills.
SUPER: Patients have to skip doses
BIDEN: We’ll bring down drug prices by almost two-thirds 
SUPER: Bring down drug prices
BIDEN: By taking steps such as allowing Medicare to negotiate.
SUPER: Allow Medicare to negotiate
VO: Mr. President, we know you care about patients and that you’ll keep your promise. Let’s get the job done. 
SUPER: PATIENTS FOR AFFORDABLE DRUGS NOW
SUPER: Let’s Get The Job Done

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SALEM, Ore. — The following statement was issued by Sheila McLean, a patient and the executive director of Patients For Affordable Drugs Now, after the Oregon Senate passed SB 764, which cracks down on abusive “pay-for-delay” deals between pharmaceutical manufacturers that delay generic competition and keep drug prices high:

“Oregonians have been suffering from high drug prices at the whim of Big Pharma for far too long. SB 764 would rightfully prohibit pharmaceutical companies from rigging the system to delay less expensive, generic medications from coming to market. This legislation would finally give Oregonians the access to less expensive prescriptions they desperately need. On behalf of patients, we urge the Oregon House to move quickly to pass this bill.”

Background: 

• SB 764 would: 
  • Prohibit an anti-competitive drug industry tactic called “pay-for-delay,” in which a brand-name drug maker cuts a deal with a generic company to delay the introduction of a lower-priced drug to market. 
  • Allow the Oregon attorney general to bring civil action against companies involved in such deals with penalties up to three times the value of the drug, or $10 million (whichever amount is greater).
• Oregon patient advocate Michael Nielsen testified in front of the Senate Committee on Health Care in support of SB 764 in March. Nielsen’s wife, Jacki, was diagnosed with the potentially fatal disease hepatitis C, and her medication is priced at more than $13,000 — or $433 per pill. Nielsen explains how unaffordable this is for the couple in a recent op-ed in The Bend Bulletin, and his story is featured in an article in The Lund Report.
• SB 764 will go to the House Committee on Health Care next, before it moves to the House floor for a vote in the coming weeks. 

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WASHINGTON, D.C. — The following statement was issued today by David Mitchell, a cancer patient and the founder of Patients For Affordable Drugs Now, in response to the reintroduction of H.R. 3 The Elijah E. Cummings Lower Drug Costs Now Act:

“H.R. 3 is the comprehensive package of reforms patients need to lower prices of prescription drugs while ensuring continued innovation and new drug development. Too many Americans are struggling to pay almost four times what patients in other wealthy nations pay for the same drugs — forced to choose between spending on bills or food and buying the medications they need. H.R. 3 will provide relief to Americans by allowing Medicare to negotiate directly with drug companies for lower prices and by preventing price gouging.  

“On behalf of patients, who overwhelmingly support Medicare negotiation, we are grateful to the leadership and members of the House of Representatives for this critical legislation. This is the reform President Biden and Democrats have promised. This is the time to get it done.”

Background: 

• The bill would: 
  • Allow Medicare to negotiate for lower drug prices and extend lower prices to all Americans with public or private sector insurance.
  • Limit the negotiated price of drugs in Medicare to no more than 120 percent of the average of six other OECD nations.
  • Limit annual out-of-pocket costs for Medicare beneficiaries to no more than $2,000. Currently, seniors can pay more than $15,000 a year for a single prescription drug.
  • End drug company price gouging by penalizing drug companies that increase prices in Medicare Parts B and D faster than the rate of inflation. 
  • Support innovation and new drug development by investing some of the expected savings into the world-class research being conducted at the National Institutes of Health.
• Patients are suffering — skipping doses of their medications and choosing between buying groceries or picking up their medications.
  • Americans pay almost four times the prices in other countries for prescription drugs.
  • Nearly 40 percent of people reported difficulty affording their medications in the last year. 
  • Communities of color are disproportionately impacted by high drug prices. Due to economic, political, and social conditions, people of color are almost twice as likely to be uninsured and have lower incomes, making drugs even more unaffordable.
• With Medicare negotiation, patients will pay less for their prescriptions and lives will be saved. 
  • Right now, more than 1.1 million Medicare patients could die over the next decade because they cannot afford to pay for their prescriptions. 
  • If Medicare were empowered to directly negotiate prices with drug companies, there could be 94,000 fewer deaths annually.
• Americans overwhelmingly support Medicare negotiation. Nearly 90 percent of voters support Medicare negotiation, including 92 percent of Democrats and 85 percent of Republicans.  
  • More than 60 percent of small business owners believe that Medicare should be able to negotiate for lower prices on behalf of Americans. 
  • The vast majority of voters agree that addressing high drug prices should be a top priority for President Biden and Congress.

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SAINT PAUL, Minn. — The following statement was issued by Sheila McLean, a patient and the executive director of Patients For Affordable Drugs Now, after the Minnesota House of Representatives passed House Commerce Bill 1031, which includes a prescription drug affordability board: 

“We applaud the Minnesota House for advancing a bill that includes the establishment of a prescription drug affordability board. The affordability board would rein in drug prices and offer relief to Minnesotans struggling under the high price of prescription drugs by establishing upper payment limits for expensive medications. On behalf of patients across Minnesota, we urge both the House and the Senate to include the board in the final commerce bill this spring.”

Background:

• The prescription drug affordability board and advisory council in Section 2 of HF 1031 would:  
  • Establish a prescription drug affordability board and an advisory council. These entities would work together to analyze drug pricing data and determine which drugs are excessively priced and cause affordability challenges. 
  • If a drug is found to create an affordability challenge, the board may establish an upper payment limit to all drug purchasers and payers in Minnesota. 
• Minnesota patient advocate Travis Paulson, who lives with type 1 diabetes, testified in support of the original bill (HF 801) in March. His insulin, which he needs to survive, currently costs $300 a vial, or $1,500 per month. Paulson has had to work odd jobs, living paycheck to paycheck in order to stay alive. 
• Both Paulson and Ramae Hamrin, who lives with the incurable blood cancer multiple myeloma, spoke at a press conference in support of HF 801 in February. Revlimid, the oral chemotherapy drug that keeps Hamrin alive, is priced at over $250,000 a year. Even on Medicare, she faces out-of-pocket costs of $15,000 a year.
• A 2020 survey released by Altarum Healthcare Value Hub revealed nearly half of Minnesotans worry about being able to pay for prescription drugs. The survey found nearly 90 percent of respondents support the establishment of a prescription drug affordability board.

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AUGUSTA — Patient advocates Lori Dumont, Miriam Wolfe, and Sabrina Burbeck will testify today in front of the Maine state legislature’s Health Coverage, Insurance, and Financial Services Committee in favor of a package of bills aimed at taking on drug companies and lowering prescription drug prices for Mainers. The bill package, Making Health Care Work for Maine, was introduced last month by Maine Senate President Troy Jackson, along with Senate Majority Leader Eloise Vitelli, Senator Cathy Breen, and Senator Ned Claxton. 

Lori Dumont, from Brewer, will share that when her brother, a taxi driver, couldn’t afford his $750-per-month insulin, he was found unresponsive in his home and barely survived after a month in the intensive care unit. 

“All of this trauma and financial distress could have been avoided if insulin were affordable,” Dumont will say to the committee. “It has been almost 100 years since insulin was discovered, and there is still no affordable option for people like my brother.” 

Miriam Wolfe of York was recently diagnosed with Crohn’s disease and was told by her doctor that she will need Remicade infusions, which are priced at about $3,500 per month. 

“I only receive $840 per month from Social Security… I don’t know how I’m going to pay these bills,” Wolfe will explain. “The entire package of bills, including LD 675, 1171, 673, and 120, is pivotal to curb drug prices and hold Big Pharma accountable so that patients like me can afford the drugs we desperately need.”

The Making Health Care Work for Maine package includes the following legislation: 

1. LD 675, led by Senator Claxton, would clamp down on unsupported price increases by fining pharmaceutical manufacturers that increase drug prices without justification. 
2. LD 1117, led by Senate President Jackson, would prohibit price gouging on generic and off-patent drugs and give the state attorney general authority to bring penalties against drug companies that refuse to lower prices. 
3. LD 673, led by Senator Breen, would create an insulin safety net program to provide emergency access to affordable insulin for Mainers needing immediate relief. 
4. LD 686, led by Senate Majority Leader Vitelli, would strengthen prescription drug pricing transparency by requiring the Maine Health Data Organization to share information collected from drug companies with the public. 
5. LD 120, led by Senate President Jackson, would establish the Office of Affordable Health Care to help examine the factors contributing to rising prices. 

Sabrina Burbeck’s 8-year-old son, Dakota, lives with type 1 diabetes and relies on insulin to survive. Humalog, the type of insulin that Dakota is prescribed, is priced at $350 for a month’s supply. 

“No mother should have to worry if the life of her bright, loving, and curious child will be cut short because the price of their medication spikes overnight or they simply can’t afford it one month,” Burbeck, from Old Town, will share. “There are so many families like mine. Mainers all over the state are crippled by the cost of their prescription drugs.”

Burbeck also spoke at last month’s press conference, where President Jackson, D-Aroostook, Senate Majority Leader Vitelli, D-Sagadahoc, Senator Breen, D-Cumberland, and Senator Claxton, D-Androscoggin, unveiled the health care package. 

The hearing and Dumont, Wolfe, and Burbeck’s testimonies can be watched here at 10:00 AM ET. 

Following the hearing, the bill package will be subject to a working session in the coming weeks. 

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AUGUSTA, Maine — Today, Patients For Affordable Drugs Now endorsed the Making Health Care Work for Maine package, a sweeping new package of bills aimed at taking on drug companies and lowering prescription drug prices for Mainers. The pieces of legislation were introduced by Maine Senate President Troy Jackson, along with Senate Majority Leader Eloise Vitelli, Senator Cathy Breen, and Senator Ned Claxton.

“We applaud Senators Jackson, Vitelli, Breen, and Claxton for this comprehensive drug price reform package,” said Sheila McLean, executive director of Patients For Affordable Drugs Now. “Patients For Affordable Drugs Now is proud to lend its endorsement of this legislation that would bring relief to Mainers suffering from the high price of prescription drugs.”

The package includes five pieces of legislation that would hold Big Pharma accountable by expanding pharmaceutical drug price transparency requirements, prohibiting unwarranted price hikes on both brand-name and generic prescription drugs, and providing support to the Maine prescription drug affordability board established by 2019’s LD 1499. The package would also provide relief to Mainers living with diabetes by creating emergency access to insulin at affordable prices.  

In Old Town, Maine, Sabrina Burbeck knows all too well the impact that high-priced insulin has on families. Her 8-year-old son, Dakota, lives with type 1 diabetes and relies on insulin to survive. Humalog, the type of insulin that Dakota is prescribed, is priced at $350 for a month’s supply. 

“No mother should have to worry if the life of her bright, loving, and curious child will be cut short because the price of their medication spikes overnight or they simply can’t afford it one month,” Burbeck explained at today’s press conference held by Senator Jackson. “The Making Health Care Work for Mainepackage is about reining in health care costs while providing immediate access to life-saving medication. It’s about making health care work for families like mine.”

The Making Health Care Work for Maine package includes the following legislation:  

1. LD 675, led by Senator Ned Claxton, would clamp down on unsupported price increases by fining pharmaceutical manufacturers that increase drug prices without justification. 
2. LD 1117, led by Senate President Troy Jackson, would prohibit price gouging on generic and off-patent drugs and give the state attorney general authority to bring penalties against drug companies that refuse to lower prices. 
3. LD 673, led by Senator Cathy Breen, would create an insulin safety net program to provide emergency access to affordable insulin for Mainers needing immediate relief. 
4. LD 686, led by Senate Majority Leader Eloise Vitelli, would strengthen prescription drug pricing transparency by requiring the Maine Health Data Organization to share information collected from drug companies with the public. 
5. LD 120, led by Senate President Troy Jackson, would establish the Office of Affordable Health Care to help examine the factors contributing to rising prices. 

The legislature’s Health Coverage, Insurance and Financial Services Committee will hold public hearings on all five bills in the coming weeks. 

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