An Oregon coalition launched today wants immediate relief from pharmaceutical industry price gouging. Oregonians for Affordable Drug Prices Now is calling on state lawmakers to hold drug companies accountable and ensure people have access to the medicines they need at affordable prices.
As organizations across the country sound the alarm over high drug prices, it is clear that it is time for action at the state level. Americans spend twice as much per capita for medicine than any other country, according to a special report by the Journal of the American Medical Association last year, and a Congressional investigation showed that drug prices can skyrocket more than 500% with no warning. Even drugs that have been on the market for years, such as insulin, are seeing triple-digit increases. Overall drug prices are far outpacing the rate of inflation, according to a report released last month by AARP.
Christy Scott, a surgical nurse at a Portland area hospital, says she daily sees the effect of high-priced medicines on her patients.
“I have patients who tell me they have had to stop taking medications because they simply can’t afford them,” says Scott. “That has serious impacts for their health and raises the cost of their care. It’s time to put patients ahead of drug company profits and bring more transparency, accountability and fairness into drug pricing.”
The strain of high drug prices is evident in our state according to recent investigations by KGW news. And in a poll of registered voters, 80% of Oregonians say prescription drug prices are too high.
As part of their work standing up for consumers, the Oregon State Public Interest Research Group has joined the new coalition.
“For too long the pharmaceutical industry has been able to set the rules for drug pricing,” says Jesse Ellis O’Brien, OSPIRG Policy Director. “When prices for basic medicines like EpiPens and insulin increase between 300 and 500 percent with no warning, it’s a burden on all Oregonians, not just patients relying on those drugs, since it leads to higher health insurance premiums and higher costs for taxpayers and businesses. Meanwhile, the pharmaceutical industry can set prices without any transparency or accountability.”
Oregonians for Affordable Drug Prices Now includes nurses, consumer groups, teachers, unions, health advocates and local health systems. They have come together for the first time to shine a light on the pharmaceutical industry and fight for lower prescription drug prices.
The coalition is calling on the legislature for a comprehensive solution that includes:
- Lowering out-of-pocket consumer costs;
- Requiring pharmaceutical manufacturers to be transparent in reporting costs and justifying prices; and,
- Holding the pharmaceutical industry accountable for prices that exceed a fair rate of return.
Members of the coalition include the Oregon Nurses Association, OSPIRG, Basic Rights Oregon, Oregon Education Association, Oregon AFSCME, Cambia Health Solutions, Kaiser Permanente, Moda Health, PacificSource, and Providence Health & Services.
For more information and to join the coalition, go to www.AffordableRXNow.org
Information sources:
“Spiking drug prices impact Portland residents,” part of KGW special investigation on high drug prices. November 17, 2016.
“The High Cost of Prescription Drugs in the United States: Origins and Prospects,” Journal of the American Medical Association Special Communication, August 23, 2016.
“Soaring Insulin Prices have Diabetics Feeling the Pain,” CBS Evening News Money Watch. August 25, 2016.
“EpiPen Price Rise Sparks Concern for Allergy Sufferers,” New York Times, August 22, 2016.
“Drug Costs for Older Adults Still Soaring: 4th straight year of double-digit increases,” AARP Public Policy Institute, December, 2016.
