Prescription drug prices keep rising. That’s to be expected since Congress has given pharmaceutical companies monopoly pricing power for their brand-name drugs, along with the ability to market them, even when they offer no benefits over lower cost drugs already on the market or, worse still, present safety risks. More than seven in ten Americans say the cost of drugs is unreasonable and that Congress is not doing enough to lower drug prices. Here’s what a new Congress should do to lower drug prices.
First, Congress should make it legal for people to import drugs from abroad. A large majority of the public agree that safety is not an issue if the US allowed importation from Canada. In fact, safety should not be a reason not to allow importation from anywhere in the world for three reasons.
- The government easily could issue a list of verified pharmacies from around the world. Today, there are several web sites to turn to that offer information on drug prices from verified pharmacies around the world, including pharmacychecker.com.
- It is hard to make a compelling case that it is safer to ban drug imports and let people go without needed medicines they cannot afford than to allow people to import drugs for personal use. Moreover, we import food from abroad. Is there really a safety difference?
- Millions of people already safely import drugs from abroad. As more people import drugs, it becomes harder for pharmaceutical companies to set high prices for their drugs.
To be clear, allowing drug importation is simply a band-aid since most people will not be able to afford imported drugs from abroad. Their health insurance won’t cover the cost of these drugs. But, once people are paying less for drugs from abroad, it makes it easier for Congress to enact a law regulating drug prices in the US at or near prices around the world and harder lift for Pharma to challenge the constitutionality of the law.
Second, Congress should pass legislation that brings down costs for all drugs to a level similar to other wealthy countries and applies to everyone in the US. Eight-five percent of Americans support a policy like this, which would allow the government to negotiate drug prices for everyone. The majority of Republicans and Democrats believe that Congress needs to do a better job of regulating drug prices.
Congress needs to go well beyond HR3, the House bill that would benchmark drug prices for a few hundred drugs to levels in other wealthy nations. HR3 does not cover more than 7,000 drugs on the market. It also does not benefit the uninsured.
Third, Congress should penalize any drug company that refuses to negotiate a lower price for a drug. It should automatically terminate the patents on the drug and permit generic drug makers to manufacture and sell the drug, which would drive competition and bringing down prices. Congressman Lloyd Doggett proposes such a regulation.
About one in four Americans find it hard to afford needed medicines. Six in ten Americans take one prescription drug and one in four take four or more. Congress would help the majority of Americans through these reforms.
Here’s more from Just Care:
- Coronavirus: The importance of health care proxies
- Drug importation could drive down price of generics
- Millions safely import low-cost drugs from abroad
- Speaker Pelosi’s drug bill passes in the US House of Representatives
- If you want easy health care access and good quality care, you probably want traditional Medicare
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