Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Perspectives: Medicine Doesn’t Work When People Can’t Afford It
The Oregonian: State Should Counter High Drug Prices With Payment Limits
Mike Nielsen has worked his entire life serving his community – first in the military and when he came home helping raise over 20 foster children. When Mike’s wife, Jacqueline, was diagnosed with Hepatitis C, they didn’t have the money to pay the $433 per pill to treat it. It took a year to find funding for her life-saving medication. Jacqueline faced liver failure, daily exhaustion, and other severe symptoms that isolated her from her family while waiting for treatment. (State Rep. Rachel Prusak and State Sen. Deb Patterson, 4/14)
Lansing State Journal: Nobody Should Be Forced To Choose Between Food And Prescription Drugs
Every day, a Michigan family has less food on the table so they can afford necessary prescription drugs. Every day, a Michigan senior rations their insulin just to pay their electric bill. Every day, a Michigan child goes without potentially life-saving medication simply because a recent price increase put it out of their reach. No one should ever have to go hungry just to afford their prescriptions, but for so many throughout our state, that is the disheartening reality they are living in. (Rep. Angela Witwer, 4/14)
Greeley Tribune: A State Prescription Drug Affordability Board Puts Pharmacies, Access To Medication At Risk
Many Coloradans struggle to pay for their prescription drugs. Sixty-six percent of all adults in the United State use prescription drugs; use is higher for older adults and patients with chronic conditions. While medications are vital to improving health, medications may be extremely costly. Advances in technology and new drug therapies have contributed to the increased cost of health care. As a pharmacist, I see the impact of drug costs on patients first-hand. While I applaud the Colorado legislature for taking on the issue of drug affordability, I have serious concerns about aspects of Senate Bill 175, which creates the Prescription Drug Affordability Review Board. This bill is intended to cap the price of certain high-cost drugs, but it may severely limit medication access for Coloradoans. (Emily Zadvorny, 4/17)
Star-Ledger: We Can Find A Fair Way To Price Drugs That Will Help Seniors And People Of Color
COVID-19 has exposed just how vulnerable so many communities are in the face of disease and just how critical access to necessary treatment is to protecting and maintaining patient health. The pandemic has also exposed how deep health inequities continue to leave many underserved communities behind. President Biden and lawmakers in New Jersey and states across the country have rightly made commitments to bridge these systemic disparities in our healthcare system and to improve treatment access and affordability. (Debbie Hart, 4/20)
