Dusty Johnson: “As we move forward with debate on Medicare prescription drugs, it is important to recognize that this bill does very…”

“As we move forward with debate on Medicare prescription drugs, it is important to recognize that this bill does very little to address the unrestrained costs of prescription drugs. I find it disconcerting that as we are discussing one of the most major public program expansions of all time, we have neglected to have a real discussion about how to ensure that taxpayers get the most bang for their buck in this program, and that seniors who will have significant cost sharing responsibilities have as minimal a burden as possible. For many years, I have been a strong advocate for implementing reforms to reduce prescription drug costs for consumers in this country. I believe one way to do that is through increasing consumers' access to approved, safe and affordable generic prescription drugs. Last week the Senate passed an amendment that would accomplish this very goal. I was pleased to see that the Gregg-Schumer-McCain-Kennedy amendment passed the Senate with wide bipartisan support and I want to thank my colleagues for their dedication and hard work on this issue. This represents one encouraging step towards leveling the playing field and ensuring that prescription drug costs under this program are indeed reasonable.”