SALEM, OR — Oregon Patient Advocates will meet with state lawmakers today to demand action to address the high price of prescription drugs. Nearly one in three Americans report not taking their drugs as prescribed due to cost. A bipartisan bill in Oregon that would have helped patients was blocked at the 11th hour from receiving a committee hearing. The bill,HB 4147, would have established a program to allow the state to import safe, affordable drugs from across the border in Canada.
Patients from across the state travelled to Salem to urge elected officials to stand up to Big Pharma and support the bill. Patients plan to ask their legislators to fight for lower drug prices, especially after this bill was pulled from consideration with less than a month left in the state’s legislative session.
Kara Campuzano of Salem, whose son was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes at 5 years old, is all too familiar with high drug prices. “One day, I received a phone call saying my son left his Humalog insulin at school. It was almost 5 PM and the school was closed,” she said. “I immediately panicked. Brody needs his insulin, and so I called our local pharmacy to try to get the dose we needed to get through the evening. I was shocked to find out that it would cost more than $300 for me to go to pick up.”
Oregon’s HB 4147 would have created a state program to import wholesale prescription drugs from Canada. At significant savings to patients, the proposed program would ensure safety on par with the U.S. drug supply chain system. According to polling, 70% of likely voters in Oregon support importation of prescriptions from Canada.
States like Vermont, Colorado, Florida, and Maine have recognized the cost savings of importation from Canada and passed laws that empower them to import and distribute prescription drugs.
Read more about the Patient Advocates visiting lawmakers today:
Ann Neilson, Madras: I have been prescribed Restasis for chronic dry eye syndrome for some time now, but I haven’t taken it as prescribed due to the horrendous cost — $2,700 per year out of pocket. I have ordered Restasis from Canada in the past because it was much less than it was in the US.
Terry Sissel, Lincoln City: Spending over $3,000 a year on prescription medications was a huge financial burden and that burden remains heavy in my mind. I had to cut the number of trips I took to visit my daughter and her family, and I have no wiggle room in my budget.
Pat Rubino, St. Helens: I was fortunate to get approved for a grant for a heart operation, but there was a catch. It did not cover the prescription drugs I needed after my surgery. The sticker shock was unreal. I considered taking a lien on my home.
Patients For Affordable Drugs Now is a bipartisan patient advocacy organization that works to elevate the stories of those suffering from the high cost of prescription drugs. P4ADNow does not accept money from anyone that benefits from the manufacture or distribution of prescription drugs.
Over 500 Oregonians have shared their stories with P4ADNow about the sacrifices they make in order to afford their prescription drugs. They skip doses, choose between buying their medications and their groceries, and sometimes even go without.
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WASHINGTON, D.C. — In response to President Trump’s statements tonight on drug prices, David Mitchell, a cancer patient and the founder of Patients For Affordable Drugs Now, issued the following statement:
“The President sent a clear signal to Senate leadership that it’s time to pass Chairman Grassley’s bill to stop drug company price gouging. Contrary to the President’s claim, drug prices are not coming down, they continue to go up. The House of Representatives has done its job in passing H.R. 3. It’s time for the Senate to pass legislation that will bring Americans relief from skyrocketing drug prices.”
BACKGROUND:
Drug prices keep rising.
Americans keep paying more.
Patients keep hurting.
People want change.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Juliana Keeping, a patient advocate and communications director for Patients For Affordable Drugs Now, will testify before the House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Health today at the hearing, “More Cures for More Patients: Overcoming Pharmaceutical Barriers.”
Juliana is the mom to 7-year-old Eli, who has a life-threatening genetic illness called cystic fibrosis. She will share with the subcommittee her family’s experiences with pharma-funded patient assistance programs, including being unable to afford a drug her son needed to stay healthy when funding from a program was not available.
“The undercurrent in all of this is that families like mine are fighting every day not just to keep our children healthy but to keep them alive. Big Pharma has manipulated my family, placing us in an unfair situation when it comes to paying for our drugs with patient assistance programs,” Keeping tells the subcommittee in her written remarks.
“We are dependent on these programs to ensure my son gets the medication he needs to stay healthy and alive. We live each day at their mercy as drug companies get richer off of their games to keep prices high and patients in limbo.”
The hearing will be held at 2:00 PM at 1100 Longworth House Office Building. Watch the hearing here and read Juliana’s prepared remarks here.
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WASHINGTON, DC — In response to the Trump Administration’s announcement of a proposed rule that would allow the importation of certain prescription drugs, David Mitchell, a cancer patient and the founder of Patients For Affordable Drugs Now, issued the following statement:
“We are glad the administration has cracked the door open to safe importation of drugs from Canada and other countries. But it’s not a solution that will lower drug prices for the overwhelming majority of Americans.
“We hope the administration will work with Congress to pass a comprehensive drug pricing reform package and finalize its international pricing index model, actions that would begin to address the fact that Americans pay two to three times more than citizens in other nations for the same drugs.”
BACKGROUND
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WASHINGTON, DC — In response to House passage of H.R. 3, the Elijah E. Cummings Lower Drug Costs Now Act, David Mitchell, a cancer patient and the founder of Patients For Affordable Drugs Now, issued the following statement:
“Patients scored a major victory in the fight for lower drug prices today. We applaud the House of Representatives for passing this landmark legislation that will expand Medicare benefits, support innovation, and save America billions of dollars from lower drug prices.
“The House has done its job. Now the Senate must act.”
BACKGROUND
H.R. 3 would:
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WASHINGTON, DC — In response to the Congressional Budget Office’s (CBO) score on H.R. 3, the Elijah E. Cummings Lower Drug Costs Now Act, David Mitchell, a cancer patient and the founder of Patients For Affordable Drugs Now, issued the following statement:
“H.R. 3 will help fix our broken system and ensure Americans with private and public insurance get the drugs they need at lower prices.
“CBO confirmed the bill will put $456 billion in savings from lower drug prices to work for taxpayers. America’s seniors will benefit from new dental, hearing, and vision coverage, investments in innovative new drugs, and lower out-of-pocket costs.
“H.R. 3’s investment into the world-class research at the National Institutes of Health will more than offset the prediction of about two new drugs lost per year. As a patient whose life is completely dependent on new drugs, I’m confident innovation is protected under this landmark legislation.
“It’s time to pass H.R. 3.”
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WASHINGTON, DC — In less than 24 hours, more than 1,600 patients from every state signed a petition supporting H.R. 3, landmark legislation to let Medicare negotiate lower drug prices. Patients For Affordable Drugs Now launched the petition this week as the House announced a vote on The Lower Drug Costs Now Act. The petition comes on the heels of television, radio, and digital advertisements in recent months that illustrate the impact of high prescription drug prices on everyday Americans. In addition, patient advocates from across the country have flown to Washington to meet their members of Congress and thousands more have written letters in support of policies to lower drug prices.
“Americans are being being ripped off, and we know Medicare negotiation is a common sense solution to drive down drug prices,” said David Mitchell, a cancer patient and the founder of Patients For Affordable Drugs Now. “Everyone, everywhere is tired of paying two to three times what other developed nations pay for the exact same prescription drugs. It’s time for the leaders in Washington to put aside differences and give the American public a win to lower drug prices.”
H.R. 3 would:
Currently, nearly 1 in 3 Americans report not taking their medicines as prescribed because of the cost. Lower drug prices will mean better adherence to drugs, which will improve health outcomes and extend life expectancy for millions of Americans. That’s likely why nine of 10 Americans from both political parties agree one of Congress’ top priorities should be to lower drug prices.
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WASHINGTON, DC — Ahead of this week’s vote on H.R. 3, landmark legislation that will overhaul America’s rigged drug pricing system, patients from across the country sent a letter to House leaders expressing support for the bill and urging passage. The Lower Drug Costs Now Act would let the government negotiate lower drug prices for Americans, use the savings from negotiation to add hearing, vision, and dental coverage for Medicare beneficiaries, and support innovation by directing billions of dollars to the National Institutes of Health.
“Americans have been waiting for this reform since powerful drug corporations blocked Medicare from negotiating lower prices nearly two decades ago,” said David Mitchell, a cancer patient and the founder of Patients For Affordable Drugs Now in a letter signed by 16 other patient advocates from across the country. “This week, the House can rectify that injustice and put our nation on a road to affordable drug prices and better health.”
The letter is signed by patients with cancer, autoimmune conditions, genetic diseases, and other chronic conditions that require expensive medications. They are covered by Medicare, Medicaid, employer plans, and through the individual marketplace, and require drugs ranging in price from $10,000 to $875,000 per year.
Momentum for the bill continues to grow. Since the bill’s introduction in September, more than 106 Members of Congress have cosponsored the bill, and dozens more supported passage in key House committees.
H.R. 3 would:
The letter to support H.R. 3 follows the launch in October of a multi-million dollar advertising campaign featuring TV, digital, and radio ads to support the passage of H.R. 3, along with drug pricing reforms proposed in the Senate and by the Trump administration. Nine of 10 Americans from both political parties agree one of Congress’ top priorities should be to lower drug prices.
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Dec. 10, 2019
Dear Chairmen Neal, Pallone, and Scott,
We write to express our strong support for H.R. 3 — The Lower Drug Costs Now Act.
As patients with cancer, autoimmune conditions, genetic diseases and other chronic conditions that require expensive medications, we each have a personal stake in this fight. We are covered by Medicare, Medicaid, employer-sponsored insurance, and through the individual marketplace. Our drug prices range from $10,000 to $875,000 per year.
We need this reform. The time for waiting is over.
Our stories demonstrate why 86% of Americans support letting Medicare negotiate directly with drug companies.[1] H.R. 3 heeds this call and takes reforms further by extending lower prices to people who receive drug coverage from private sector insurers as well. H.R. 3 will improve health by ensuring Americans can afford to take drugs as prescribed; it will also improve Medicare beneficiary health by adding dental, vision, and hearing benefits to the program. Importantly, it will support innovation and new drug development by increasing funding for the NIH and FDA.
All of the signers of this letter traveled to Washington D.C. in recent months to meet with our elected officials and demand action to lower drug prices. Today, we urge passage of the Elijah E. Cummings Lower Drug Costs Now Act. If we could make one amendment to the bill, we would request that Congress extend the bill’s provisions to Americans without insurance coverage — who are often faced with the most critical affordability challenges at the pharmacy counter.
Americans have been waiting for this reform since powerful drug corporations blocked Medicare from negotiating lower prices nearly two decades ago. This week, the House can rectify that injustice and put our nation on a road to affordable drug prices and better health.
Signed,
David Mitchell, Bethesda, MD, Multiple Myeloma
Robin Bennett, Grand Island, NE, Type 2 Diabetes
Marta Deike, Lodi, CA, Lambert-Eaton Myasthenic Syndrome
Tiburon Erickson, Taylorsville, UT, Mother of Type 1 Diabetic
Ethan Erickson, Taylorsville, UT, Type 1 Diabetes
Robert Fowler, Ridgeville, OH, Multiple Myeloma
Rose Hernandez, California City, CA, Asthma
Kimberly Ishoy, South Jordan, UT, Type 1 Diabetes
Juliana Keeping, Silver Spring, MD, Mother of Cystic Fibrosis son
Luz Lopez, Phoenix, AZ, Fibromyalgia
Karen Macedon, Sacramento, CA, Type 2 Diabetes
DJ Clayton Martin, Jacksonville, FL, Sickle Cell Disease
Clayton McCook, Oklahoma City, OK, Father of Type 1 Diabetic
Jacquie Persson, Waterloo, IA, Crohn’s Disease
Sam Reid, Washington, D.C., Crohn’s Disease
Lauren Stanford , Washington, D.C., Type 1 Diabetes
Ashley Suder, McMehen, WV, Lupus
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