Today’s Action: Tell the House to improve the prescription drug bill

As every OD Action community member currently taking prescription drugs knows, the cost of staying healthy and pain-free ranges from annoying to financially crippling. Our leaders know this – and it’s even a bipartisan goal that both parties have publicly pronounced their interest in tackling.

House Democrats have taken a step in the right direction with the Lower Drug Costs Now Act of 2019. It’s a good bill – but it could be a lot better, and we have only a short window to urge leadership to make key changes. Even if your Representative isn’t a Democrat, he or she still needs to hear these demands!

Call or email your Representative and tell them to support amendments that provide the following changes to the Lower Drug Costs Now Act of 2019 and include other drug bills they may be considering:

• Significantly expand the number of drugs the government negotiates prices on each year (currently set at 25, out of thousands of drugs).
• Expand the number of drugs eligible for negotiation (currently only includes drugs with zero competitors).
• Strengthen the government’s ability to “claw back” money that drug companies make by overcharging consumers
• Require companies to negotiate prices with the government before they hit the market, not after
• Protect all consumers from unfair price spikes (currently only Medicare recipients are protected, not those who use private/employer insurance).

This is a rare moment when leaders on both sides of the aisle are hearing from their constituents, which means even Trump could be pressured into going along with a positive step for a change.

We must be crystal clear about what we want: a really good bill, not a watered down band-aid-of-a-fix that allows politicians to celebrate without doing enough to help consumers.

Email or call (202.224.3121) your Representative and demand amendments to the Lower Drug Costs Now Act of 2019 that expands the number of drugs negotiated on and the number of drugs eligible for negotiation, and protects consumers from high launch prices and price spikes.