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John,
Did you know that in the U.S. we spend more than twice as much per capita on prescription drugs as other countries?1 This is because pharmaceutical companies have been able to set their prices with no limitations, price gouging the American people.
Last year, when President Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act into law, it included a critical provision that allows Medicare to begin negotiating drug prices for the first time in two decades. But, now, Big Pharma is fighting back.
Pharmaceutical giant Merck is suing the federal government to stop the new law from taking effect, claiming that Medicare negotiating drug prices is a “sham” and a form of “extortion.”2
The true extortion is Big Pharma price gouging the American people on critically needed life-saving medication. That’s why, yesterday, we sent more than 5,000 messages directly to the inbox of Merck’s CEO demanding Merck drop its greedy lawsuit.
Hold Big Pharma accountable! Donate today to keep the pressure on Merck to drop its lawsuit and allow Medicare to negotiate drug prices for older Americans and people with disabilities.
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Last year, Merck reported sales of $59.3 billion. And they’re expecting similar sales again this year.3 In 2021, Merck made the news when it increased prices on several of its vaccines by about 11% percent, well above inflation.4
Merck is hardly alone. From July 2021 to July 2022, the prices of 1,216 prescription drugs increased by 31.6%, considerably higher than the inflation rate of 8.5%.5
On average, 37% of each Social Security check goes toward out-of-pocket health care costs, and a huge part of these costs are drug prices. To help keep more money in the pockets of seniors and less in the pockets of Big Pharma, we’re fighting back! The victory of drug price negotiations in the Inflation Reduction Act must be just the beginning; we’ve got to build on that success―not let it get stalled by greedy delaying tactics.
Donate today to demand Merck drop its lawsuit and finally allow Medicare to negotiate drug prices.
If you've saved your payment information with ActBlue Express, your secure donation will go through immediately:
Together, we’re taking on Big Pharma’s greed, fighting for the rights of everyday people.
Thank you,
Deborah Weinstein
Executive Director, Coalition on Human Needs
1 How do prescription drug costs in the United States compare to other countries?
2 Merck sues over Medicare price negotiations
3 Merck’s Q4 and full-year 2022 earnings report
4 Merck, Amgen adopt double-digit price hikes in test to Big Pharma's unofficial annual limits: analyst
5 Price Increases for Prescription Drugs, 2016-2022
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