Bernie Sanders Sets Terms for 2016 With Prescription Drug Reform Bill

[cal04]

The Vermont senator is the first prominent candidate to roll out a detailed plan to lower drug prices.
http://www.nationaljournal.com/health-care/2015/09/10/bernie-sanders-sets-terms-2016-with-prescription-drug-reform-bill

Hil­lary Clin­ton and Bernie Sanders have spent a lot of time talk­ing about pre­scrip­tion drug costs on the cam­paign trail, but the sen­at­or from Ver­mont is the first prom­in­ent can­did­ate to roll out a de­tailed plan to lower prices.

The center­piece is a fa­mil­i­ar idea among Demo­crats: Al­low Medi­care to ne­go­ti­ate dir­ectly with drug com­pan­ies. Right now, private plans do the ne­go­ti­at­ing un­der Medi­care Part D and the gov­ern­ment is ex­pli­citly barred from play­ing a role un­der the 2003 law that cre­ated the pre­scrip­tion drug be­ne­fit for the seni­or in­sur­ance pro­gram.

It’s a pop­u­lar idea and un­likely to be con­tro­ver­sial with­in the party. An Au­gust Kais­er Fam­ily Found­a­tion poll found that 83 per­cent of Amer­ic­ans sup­por­ted the policy and 72 per­cent thought it would be ef­fect­ive. Pres­id­ent Obama pro­posed dir­ect ne­go­ti­ations for spe­cialty drugs in his 2016 budget, and Clin­ton has said that the gov­ern­ment should “drive a harder bar­gain ne­go­ti­at­ing with drug com­pan­ies about the costs of drugs.”

(snip)
“When a huge ma­jor­ity of the Amer­ic­an people want us to take ac­tion, when 74 per­cent of Re­pub­lic­ans and 93 per­cent of Demo­crats want the fed­er­al gov­ern­ment to ne­go­ti­ate with the drug com­pan­ies to lower prices, the time has come to say ‘enough is enough,’” Sanders said. “We can­not let the drug com­pan­ies con­tin­ue to rip off Amer­ic­ans who are suf­fer­ing any longer.”

[sueh]

1. K & R. It is way past time...I want to get this bill passed!

[SoapBox]

2. Grrrrrrrrr!!!!

That was the damndest thing ever...not letting the government negotiate drug prices....

Fucking Bush and Pharma!

[merrily]

3. Only 93% of Democrats and 74% of Republicans want the US govt to be able to negotiate drug prices?

Why is that closer to 100%?

[Enthusiast]

4. Wow! This is huge! K&R!