On the recordNovember 15, 2019
Mr. Speaker, yesterday was World Diabetes Day. Diabetes is a disease that affects millions of Americans, including my own daughter, Katy, who was diagnosed as a type 1 diabetic when she was 8 years old, almost 20 years ago. We have to do more to make sure that hardworking families have access to affordable prescription drugs, often, lifesaving drugs. Sadly, under the Trump administration, the President has rolled back access to healthcare and undermined the Affordable Care Act, raising prices for lifesaving drugs and eliminating protections for those with preexisting conditions. That is the aim of this administration. One in five Americans are skipping doses, cutting pills in half, and skipping their insulin because they just don't have the money it takes to keep themselves healthy. It costs about $5.60 to produce a vial of insulin. Americans sometimes have to pay hundreds of dollars just to have that drug that was brought into this country, invented in the 1920s, and hasn't changed substantially. We have to make sure to pass H.R. 3, which will make sure that Americans have access to prescription drugs at an affordable price. It is the right thing to do. Congress has to act. ____________________





