🚩 Ask your Representative to Vote NO on Socialist Drug Plan

This week the House of Representatives is taking one more step to legislate socialist medicine under the veil of lower drug prices. H.R. 3, or the Lower Drug Costs Now Act, lowers drug prices by forcing the Department of Health and Human Service’s Secretary (HHS) to negotiate prices with pharmaceutical companies on behalf of Medicare beneficiaries. This negotiation mimics the steps private insurers often take to lower costs for their beneficiaries and the President already implemented drug pricing reforms in a final rule published by HHS in August 2018.

According to the Speaker’s office, some of the highlights of Lower Drug Costs Now Act include: forcing drug companies to use the negotiated drug prices by Medicare when working with private insurers, implementing price controls, and setting a $2,000 out-of-pocket limit on prescription drug costs for Medicare beneficiaries.

If the forced participation and price-fixing wasn’t enough of an indicator that this is a socialist plan meant to hurt the pharmaceutical industry, then the tax hitting drug companies for not complying surely solidifies the fact. Companies will face a tax starting at 65% of the sales of drugs the previous year and increasing as high as 95% for not negotiating or failing to reach an agreement on price.

According to the White House Council of Economic Advisors, the Lower Drug Costs Now Act “could lead to as many as 100 fewer drugs entering the United States market over the next decade, or about one-third of the total number of drugs expected to enter the market during that time.” It is also estimated that “H.R. 3 would reduce population health by 37.5 million to 100 million life-years over the next decade. In other words, H.R. 3 would reduce Americans’ average life expectancy by about four months.”

H.R. 3 is a terrifying proposal that will gravely hurt the American people. Please call or email your Representative to oppose H.R. 3.