Political Quotes

“I thank the gentleman for yielding and for his leadership on this issue. Madam Chair, the Chamber can see the chart on my right, which was prepared by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, which shows that the American people pay far more for prescription drugs than any other country in the world by wide, unacceptable margins. Per capita, the United States spends 25 percent more on prescription drugs than Switzerland, the country with the next highest drug costs. Specific examples of this outrageous disparity abound. A vial of insulin in the U.S. is $300. The same vial in Canada is $32. In the U.S., an EpiPen two-pack has a list price of $608, in the U.K., $69. About one-quarter of Americans say that it is difficult for them to afford their prescriptions. Seventy-nine percent of Americans think the costs of prescription drugs is unreasonable. Approximately one-third of Americans say they haven't taken their medicine as prescribed because of trouble affording it. This week, Congress will vote finally to use the leverage Medicare has to get U.S. drug prices in line with the international price index for developed countries whose standard of living is comparable to the U.S. and whose life expectancy in many cases actually exceeds the U.S. As CBO confirmed, this bill will save patients millions of dollars and will ensure that this chart changes for the better.…”