A Houston television station – KPRC – recently aired a consumer segment on buying personal prescription medications from Canada, check it out here. The segment included comments from Rep. Lloyd Doggett (D-TX) who is fighting for lower drug prices.
The broadcast piece profiles 62-year-old Belinda Smith who had to find her life-saving medications at a lower price after losing her job and insurance, so she turned to Canada where she could get her medication at a fraction of the price.
In many other countries, the government negotiates pricing with the drug companies, but that is not the case in the U.S.
“In America, pharmaceutical manufacturers are granted government-approved monopolies, and then nothing is done about their price gouging,” said Rep. Lloyd Doggett, D-Texas.
Rep. Doggett leads the Task Force on Prescription Drugs and recently sponsored the Affordable and Safe Prescription Drug Importation Act.
“I joined several of my colleagues in introducing legislation calling for the importation of pharmaceuticals,” Doggett said. “It’s one of the ways we might force a little competition to try and reduce these monopoly prices.”
Rep. Doggett said he will continue pushing the issue any time he has the chance, in order to keep the issue top of mind for other lawmakers.
For the full segment, click here.
Commentaires