ANNAPOLIS, Md. — Maryland is taking a strong stand on drug prices today with the introduction of SB1023, legislation to establish a drug cost commission and ensure Maryland residents pay fair prices for prescriptions. The legislation is strongly endorsed by Patients For Affordable Drugs NOW, a bipartisan national patient organization focused on policies to lower drug prices. Patients For Affordable Drugs NOW announced plans to educate, activate, and mobilize Maryland patients in support of the bill.
“The Maryland residents we hear from are tired of drug corporations raising prices without regard to the harm to patients and consumers,” said David Mitchell, a cancer patient and Maryland resident whose drugs cost $450,000 per year and the Founder of Patients For Affordable Drugs NOW. “The legislation introduced today would be a serious step forward toward helping millions of Marylanders by keeping drugs affordable. I urge the legislature to move quickly and enact this critical measure.”
P4ADNOW has collected hundreds of stories from the Appalachians to the Chesapeake Bay. The organization will create online tools that help patients contact elected officials in support of the bill, and it will amplify the voices of Maryland residents struggling under high drug prices to make elected officials see the heavy toll of high-priced drugs.
Among those residents is John Darby, 48, a married father of two with a rare blood cancer. For a decade, he’s relied on a daily injection to manage his illness. Its price is $5,200 per month.
“This is the only medication available at this time that keeps him healthy enough to work, be a father and stay alive,” said Helen Darby, his wife.
The bill would:
A partner bill, HB1194, is expected to be introduced March 6.
Patients For Affordable Drugs NOW does not accept donations from organizations that profit from the development or distribution of prescription drugs.
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DENVER — The introduction of HB1260, The Drug Price Transparency Act of 2018, brings Coloradans one step closer to lowering drug prices. The legislation is strongly endorsed by Patients For Affordable Drugs NOW, a bipartisan national patient organization focused on policies to lower drug prices. P4ADNOW announced plans to educate, activate, and mobilize Colorado patients in support of the bill.
The group will create online tools that help patients contact elected officials in support of the bill, and it will amplify the voices of Coloradans struggling under high drug prices to make elected officials see the heavy toll of high-priced drugs.
“No one in Colorado should have to choose between affording a life-saving drug and putting food on the table, but that is exactly what Colorado patients report to us,” said David Mitchell, a cancer patient whose drugs cost $450,000 per year and the Founder of Patients For Affordable Drugs NOW. “Colorado patients tell us devastating stories of skipping doses, cutting pills in half, and going into bankruptcy due to the skyrocketing price of prescription drugs. That’s why this bill is so critical.”
Retired nurse Margaret Wright-Mueller is among those Coloradans hurting under skyrocketing drug costs and rooting for the transparency bill.
“I worked in the ICU for 44 years. I took care of patients, especially Medicare patients. They often cried and said they could not afford their meds or needed to cut their food bill,” said Wright-Mueller. “Now, I am struggling in the same ways.”
Wright-Mueller is one of more than 300 Colorado patients who have shared stories with Patients For Affordable Drugs NOW.
HB1260 would shed much-needed light on drug prices by requiring drug corporations to justify price hikes to state officials. If passed, drug corporations won’t be able to blindside Colorado patients with arbitrary price hikes. The transparency bill would:
This move toward transparency can help further discussions over how we can address prices in the long term.
Patients For Affordable Drugs NOW does not accept donations from organizations that profit from the development and distribution of prescription drugs.
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