Political Quotes

“Kristen is the chapter leader of Connecticut #insulin4all and attended the event I mentioned. She was inspired to become an advocate for affordable and equitable access to insulin after facing tough barriers in her own medical treatment. She was forced to become one of the one in four patients with diabetes in the United States who has resorted to insulin-rationing in the face of high drug costs. Let's be clear about insulin-rationing. It means reducing the dosage--rationing the consumption--to lower the cost. When we talk about folks who have to cut pills in half or seniors who take a pill every other day instead of every day, that is rationing. That is what Kristen had to do in the face of these rising drug prices. In order to pursue her dream internship, Kristen had to purchase the only health insurance she could afford, which was a high-deductible plan whose monthly payments consumed 15 percent of her income. To try to prepare for the realities of this kind of coverage, she had to hoard her insulin and other diabetes supplies for months in advance, deliberately starving her body of the medicine she needed in order to keep her head above water financially. I have submitted bipartisan legislation that was recently approved unanimously by the Judiciary Committee, along with my colleague Senator Cornyn, that would end these abusive practices surrounding patents-- patent-thicketing and product-hopping.…”