Arkansas Rep. Berry Takes Aim At Drug Costs

The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette on Sunday reported on Rep. Marion Berry (D-Ark.), co-chair of the House Prescription Drug Task FOrce, and his role as a "thor[n] in the side" of the pharmaceutical industry, saying that he was "picking on drug manufacturers before picking on drug manufacturers was cool." A critic of pharmaceutical companies' "soaring ... costs," Berry "spurr[ed]" the investigation of price "gouging" by Mylan Pharmaceuticals and co-sponsored legislation allowing the reimportation of U.S.-made medicine from abroad. He said the bill -- declared "unworkable" last year by the Clinton administration and never implemented -- will be "revisit[ed]" this year and that "other legislation" addressing prescription drug costs "is coming." The Democrat-Gazette reports that Berry, a former pharmacist, is an "uncomfortable" public speaker who "becomes forceful -- and animated" when talking about prescription drug costs. He said, "[The cost of prescription drugs] is not about picking a winning political issue. I think it's a moral issue. You don't have to use a gun to rob somebody. Stealing is stealing" (Freking, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, 3/4).