October 31,2019

ICYMI: Grassley Pushes His Prescription Drug Plan

Senator Cites Bipartisan Support, Saying Americans 'Want This'
By James Lynch
 
Americans want lower prescription drug prices.
 
Sen. Chuck Grassley has a plan for that.
 
The Iowa Republican who chairs the Senate Finance Committee said Wednesday that support is growing in the Senate for his Prescription Drug Pricing Reduction Act.
…
The plan won bipartisan support in the Finance Committee, but Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell hasn’t said if or when he will call it up for a floor vote.
 
“I hope Sen. McConnell will come around to the realization that this bill is very popular among the older voters and schedule it,” Grassley said during his weekly conference call with reporters. “Americans want this bill so that I would hope all senators would support this bipartisan effort.”
 
Grassley said he hears about drug costs at each of his 99 county meetings every year, and polling shows a majority of Americans share those concerns.
 
According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, six in 10 Americans take at least one prescription drug and one in four takes four or more prescription drugs.
 
The foundation also reports that 72 percent of Democrats, 63 percent of independents and 53 percent of Republicans say there is not as much regulation as there should be when it comes to limiting the price of prescription drugs.
 
“So this is something that’s not going to go away,” Grassley said.
 

The senator described his plan as “the only serious bipartisan effort in the Congress” to address drug costs.