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? Have Medicare negotiate drug prices on behalf of seniors. Even the President says he supports this policy. Medicaid can negotiate drug costs, the Veterans Administration can negotiate drug costs, why shouldn't Medicare be able to leverage its 50 million beneficiaries to get a better deal? This motion is simple; it is something the President has talked about, something the American people support. This motion to commit would instruct the Finance Committee--within 3 days--to report out a bill that would require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to begin negotiating drug prices on behalf of seniors in Medicare. There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in the Record, as follows: Motion to Commit With Instructions Mr. Durbin moves to commit the bill H.R.…”