“Over the last decade, as prescription drug prices have inflated each year by double-digit percentages, many of us here in Washington have heard your pleas for assistance.  

“Unfortunately, thanks to the Republican controlled U.S. House of Representatives, that assistance will not be coming anytime soon.  In June, the House approved a Republican prescription drug bill, written in the backrooms of Congress by pharmaceutical companies—companies who are represented here in Washington by PhRMA.  The bill PhRMA and House Republicans produced does nothing to change the status quo. Under the Republican backed bill, seniors will still struggle to pay for their prescription drugs, and Americans will continue to pay more for their medications than people in any other country. 
 
“The Republican prescription drug bill does not guarantee a defined benefit to one, single senior.  Instead, it sends subsidies to private insurance companies in the hope the companies will turn around and sell drug-only policies to seniors.  The Republican bill leaves the decision of determining what seniors should pay in deductibles and premiums to the insurance companies, and then does not even define what benefits these plans should provide.  Essentially, the Republicans are putting their faith in private insurance companies—companies that say they don’t want to provide such coverage and who already have a pitiful record of providing health care to seniors.  
 
“As the co-chairman of the Democratic Health Care Task Force, I worked with my Democratic colleagues in writing legislation that provided a guaranteed benefit under Medicare.  Under our plan, seniors would pay a low monthly premium of $25 and a low annual deductible of $100 a year.  In return, after a senior purchased more than $100 in medications, Medicare would cover 80 percent of the senior’s prescription drug bills, while the senior would only pay the remaining 20 percent.  Then, once a senior incurred $2,000 in out-of-pocket payments, Medicare would cover 100 percent of the senior’s bills.  

“The Democratic bill, unlike its Republican counterpart, also tackled the issue of prescription drug prices by instructing the U.S. Secretary of the Health and Human Services (HHS) to negotiate with pharmaceutical companies in an effort to reduce the cost of prescription drugs purchased by Medicare beneficiaries.  The main reason prescription drug prices are currently so high for seniors is due to the fact that, as a group, they lack the bargaining power to get their drugs at a discount.  Our legislation would have given them that bargaining power.  

“Unfortunately, the Democratic bill never saw the light of day on the House floor.  The Republican leadership, realizing that our bill provided true relief to seniors and might appeal to some in their own party, refused to allow a floor debate and vote on our alternative.  

“This action in the House shows that you will never receive a true Medicare prescription drug benefit until Democrats control the House of Representatives.  Only at that time will your voices be heard in the House, rather than the voices and pocketbooks of the pharmaceutical companies.  However, you can make your voices heard today, by showing the suits at PhRMA that you and your friends will go to the voting booth in November and will support members of Congress who are not in PhRMA’s back pocket.    

“This was a golden opportunity for the U.S. House of Representatives to address the needs of our seniors.  Instead, Republicans chose deception over assistance.  The biggest losers are all of you here today and the millions of senior citizens who, living on fixed incomes, will continue to be forced to choose between the medications they need to live a longer and healthier life and necessities like food and rent.”