Today, we attended an event hosted by The Atlantic focused on the high cost of pharmaceuticals – At What Cost?
It will come as no surprise that the inside-the-beltway policy debate around access to prescription medications continues to be mired in half-truths and finger-pointing blame games but the bottom line remains the same – Americans pay more for prescription drugs than any other country in the world.
The event was well-attended – interest in the issue remains high – and nobody is buying what #BigPharma is selling. There remains high skepticism around any defense by shills of the industry claiming that high prices aren’t the fault of the pharma industry.
Real quotes heard this morn included:
“Let’s not confuse cost and price”
“Spending on administrative costs is higher than spending on prescription drugs”
“Every report shows that the outlook on pricing will be stable rather than increasing in the future”
Interestingly, Express Scripts released a report today focused on the 800,000 Americans who spend more than $50,000 per year on prescription drugs. Perhaps this is reasonable from a #BigPharma perspective, but the consensus among those of us in the real world, is that it is not acceptable when lives are at stake.
The pushback from #BigPharma remains the same old broken record – the industry doesn’t make enough money to fund the search for future cures so they are hard-pressed to charge more for prescription medications. Does anyone believe that argument?
Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) represented the plight of many consumers by pointing out that Minnesotans can see Canada from their porches, and that the state supports personal prescription importation. While she acknowledged that importation is one of the least likely legislative solutions to move forward, we assert that it is an immediate solution to the high cost of pharmaceuticals.
Representative Patrick Meehan (R-PA) pointed out that everyone is looking for a quick fix and real change is going to happen through a quick fix.
But while policy wonks and industry shills talk in circles in Washington, smart consumers know that they can save serious dollars ordering personal prescriptions from licensed and legitimate online pharmacies in Canada and that is no smoke-and-mirrors game, it’s reality.