Paul Visits with Seniors in Aransas
County Promotes Plan to Provide Affordable
Prescription Drugs
Victoria, TX - Representative Ron Paul visited Wednesday with senior
citizens during two stops in Rockport, discussing his efforts in Washington and
Texas to make prescription drugs more affordable. Paul met with seniors at the
Rockport Coastal Care Center and the Oak Crest Nursing Home, both in Aransas
County. Dr. Paul has introduced the "Pharmaceutical Freedom Act" (HR 3636) and
begun a new district service, "The Free or Low-Cost Prescription Drug Program",
both of which are designed to address the problem of skyrocketing prescription
drug costs.
"The 'Pharmaceutical Freedom Act' will ensure that millions of American
seniors have access to affordable pharmaceutical products," Paul stated. "My
bill makes pharmaceuticals more affordable to seniors by providing them with a
tax credit for money spent on prescription drugs. It also removes needless
government barriers to importing pharmaceuticals and protects Internet
pharmacies from being strangled by federal regulation. These measures will
increase competition and make prescription drugs more affordable for millions of
Americans."
Paul also discussed the "Free and Low-Cost Prescription Drug" program, a
district effort he introduced two weeks ago. The program is designed to make
seniors aware of programs offered by many drug companies that supply
prescription drugs at little or no charge to individuals who cannot afford them,
and to help them fill out the necessary paperwork to apply for the programs. Dr.
Paul's staff has held workshops in several district locations and already has
helped more than 200 seniors in their search for more affordable prescription
drugs.
"We tested this program and had several success stories where seniors
received free prescriptions," Paul continued. "After seeing positive results, I
decided to make this a district-wide effort to provide immediate help to our
seniors. However, the best approach to reduce the high cost of prescription
drugs in the long run is to eliminate government subsidies of insurance and
pharmaceutical companies, while preventing government rationing and
price-fixing. We need to create a true free market for prescription drugs."
"The 'Pharmaceutical Freedom Act' will give senior citizens more options and
will dramatically reduce the cost of their drug bills," Paul concluded. "In the
meantime, the "Free and Low-Cost Prescription Drug" program will give seniors in
my district needed short-term relief until Congress joins me in fighting for a
real, practical solution to this national problem."