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Today, Congressman David Scott voted to pass H.R. 3, the Elijah E. Cummings Lower Drug Costs Now Act, which will help bring down the cost of prescription drugs and level the playing field for American patients who are paying more for their medicines than patients in other countries. This bill gives Medicare the power to negotiate directly with drug companies and allows private health insurance companies to make these same low prices available to their consumers. It also creates a new $2,000 out-of-pocket limit on prescription drug costs for Medicare beneficiaries, cutting high copays, deductibles, and coinsurance costs by 50 percent.

Over 75,000 people in Georgia’s 13^th District are enrolled in a Medicare Part D plan. Thousands of seniors in Georgia living with diabetes, arthritis, breast cancer, and other serious medical conditions spend between $10,000 and $40,000 every year for prescription drugs. The Lower Drug Costs Now Act would significantly decrease these prices by more than 70 percent.

“Our communities are facing skyrocketing prescription drug prices, forcing many to choose between their medications and putting food on the table or meeting other basic needs,” said Congressman Scott. “I was proud to vote for H.R. 3 today and ensure that Medicare invests the savings from these low drug prices in our nation’s community health centers, federally-funded biomedical research for new cures and treatments, and maternal health programs for new mothers in rural areas. I believe that cost should not prevent patients from receiving life-saving treatments. We must work to make prescription drugs more affordable for patients without compromising the quality of drugs that enter the market.”

Background

Nearly 80 percent of Medicare Part D spending is attributed to 250 of the most expensive prescription drugs in United States. H.R. 3 gives Medicare authority to negotiate lower prescription drug prices and protect patients from price-gouging. This approach mirrors an existing model for Medicare negotiating prescription drug prices in the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). In addition to providing savings for patients and their families, the Elijah E. Cummings Lower Drug Costs Now Act allows the federal government to reinvest $98 billion for new drug research and development, ensuring that savings generated by this bill are not wasted on drug marketing campaigns.

Under H.R. 3, Medicare patients receive new dental, vision, and hearing benefits, as well as protection from high deductibles. Seniors covered by Medicare and Medicaid would also have access to additional subsidies to cover their prescription drug costs, and families receive additional funding for local community health centers. In Georgia’s 13^th District, this expanded benefits would help 92,500 seniors receive dental care, provide 79,700 seniors with new eyeglasses and vision care, and protect 83,400 seniors from hearing loss.

For more information, please click here (Congress.gov) and here (Speaker Pelosi’s page on H.R.3).

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