Market Watch – 6/24/20
Congress must act now to ensure that COVID-19 vaccines and treatments are affordable
Americans need to have full confidence that decision-makers at the highest levels of government are acting in the interest of their health and well-being.
Since the start of the race for a COVID-19 vaccine, the U.S. government has funneled more than $10 billion in taxpayer dollars to pharmaceutical companies through contracts for the expedited innovation of a vaccine. So far, the government’s investment has been made with no strings attached, not even a guarantee that any vaccines and treatments will be affordable to the people who need them.
Bloomberg Law – 6/18/20
Margarida Jorge, a campaign director for the coalition Lower Drug Prices Now, is skeptical the industry will set affordable prices. “We couldn’t trust them on EpiPens,” she says. “Why on Earth would we think that we could trust the prescription drug industry to create a vaccine that they would then price at a fair rate.” Almost 9 in 10 U.S. adults say they’re concerned the drug industry will leverage the pandemic to raise prices, shows a poll from Gallup and West Health released on June 18.
Politico Pulse – 6/9/20
“Mergers and consolidation in the drug space usually end badly for consumers said Margarida Jorge, campaign director for Lower Drug Prices Now. Affordable vaccines and treatments should be a priority during the Covid-19 pandemic but “we can’t do that if they’re not affordable because massive drug conglomerates are allowed to charge any price they want,” Jorge said in a statement.”
Inside Health Policy – 6/9/20
The federal government this month will run out of the only drug shown to help COVID-19 patients recover, and it is not clear whether Gilead will continue to provide new supplies of remdesivir to HHS for free. HHS will send out its last batch of remdesivir to states on June 29, an HHS official told Inside Health Policy, though it will reserve less than 10% of its supply in case “hotspots emerge in the coming weeks.”
Las Vegas Sun – 6/8/20
“This move is another political stunt from a president worried about his poll numbers with seniors as his broken campaign promises keep stacking up,” said Margarida Jorge, national campaign director for the advocacy group Lower Drug Prices Now.
LA Times – 6/4/20
“This move is another political stunt from a president worried about his poll numbers with seniors as his broken campaign promises keep stacking up,” said Margarida Jorge, national campaign director for the advocacy group Lower Drug Prices Now.
“Instead of tweaks and one-off proposals for political gain, we need to overhaul the system that gives drug corporations monopoly control over prices, and instead put in place fair rules that ensure access and affordability for everyone,” she said.
Newsweek – 6/2/20
OPED by Cong. Jan Schakowsky (D-IL) and Cong. Francis Rooney (R-FL)
Over the past decade, almost every new medication brought to market was paid for by a hefty investment from taxpayer dollars. Each of these drugs was developed in the interest of a greater public good: to alleviate pain, improve health and save lives. However, accountability for public funding has not prevented pharmaceutical corporations from hiking up prices on new and existing drugs for patients, increasing the cost of prescription drugs up to 10 percent every year.
