Political Quotes

“I intend to offer the following motion to H.R. 1628, and I ask unanimous consent that it be printed in the Record. The motion is supported by Senator Blumenthal. All of these Republican repeal bills shift costs onto consumers, patients, hospitals, and State budgets. None of them do anything to actually address what is driving the increase in healthcare costs. And one of those biggest drivers? Pharmaceutical costs--Blue Cross of Illinois tells me they spend more on prescription drugs than inpatient hospital care. So what can we do to address prescription drugs? Listen to the American Medical Association, which called for a ban on direct-to- consumer pharmaceutical advertising. According to the AMA, these ads are, ``driving demand for expensive treatments despite the clinical effectiveness of less costly alternatives.'' In short, pharma advertises their drugs because they know you will tell your doctor you need it--driving up the cost-- regardless of whether it's right for you. That is why they spend billions on it. But the moment of truth on when patients find out about the cost is when they are checking out at the pharmacy. That is wrong. So my motion to commit would instruct the Finance Committee--within 3 days--to report out a bill that helps lower the cost of healthcare by tackling the driving cost of prescription drugs, requiring pharmaceutical companies to disclose the price of their drug in their ads.…”