Executive Calendar

Floor Speech

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Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, I was looking to my colleagues because I think we all understand and are trying to accommodate each other's schedules and have the opportunity to speak on the floor. So I appreciate the opportunity to say a few words. I first thank Senator Casey for organizing this very important discussion on the floor, and Senator Cardin and Senator Wyden for their passion, and I want to join them in speaking out about protecting Medicaid.

We are talking about people, the majority in nursing homes. We have three out of five seniors in Michigan who have nursing home care and get that through Medicaid, which is critically important, as well as children and families. So I want to lend my support to them, and then I wish to expand the talk about another very important piece of healthcare and how we bring down costs for people.

I have always believed that healthcare is a basic human right and everyone should be able to afford the medicines they need. We have seniors in nursing homes that are there. We talked about Medicaid. In fact, they are more likely than not going to be involved in needing prescription drugs, some kind of medicines, and I am deeply concerned that people are not able to get their medications at a price they can afford to get what they need. Unfortunately, that is certainly happening in Michigan right now.

As we know, over the past decade or so, the costs of medications have really skyrocketed. It is actually shocking to see the numbers going up. Between 2008 and 2016, prices on the most popular brand-name drugs have gone up over 208 percent. I know that in Michigan most people's salaries haven't gone up 208 percent. And if someone is living on a pension or Social Security, that certainly hasn't gone up 208 percent.

So these are huge increases. And according to AARP, the average price of brand-name drugs that seniors often take rose at four times the rate of inflation just in 2017--four times the rate of inflation. So even if you are getting a small little increase, an inflationary increase in your salary or in a pension, your medicines could have gone up four times higher.

I hear from seniors all over Michigan about what a struggle this is. I know we all hear this. Some people are forced to cut back on other necessities, like groceries or paying their bills. Others cut their pills in half or skip doses. You know, this has gone on and on for too long. Some folks stop filling their prescriptions altogether, risking their health.

Suzanne lives in Howell, MI. She takes several medications, including insulin, and she shared her story with me. Unfortunately, for Suzanne, the price for insulin has gone from $21 a month to $278 a month to $410 a month--the same medicine. The same medicine was $21 a month and now is up to $410 a month.

Suzanne isn't alone. In fact, insulin prices overall have tripled in the past 15 years, and let me just add that insulin was discovered over 100 years ago by two Canadian doctors who felt they should not be reimbursed for their patent because this discovery was so important for changing people's lives and the quality of their lives. They actually gave the patent to the University of Toronto for three Canadian dollars over 100 years ago, and yet we are now seeing the price triple just in the past 15 years.

This places a real burden on people with diabetes and their families.

Suzanne said this:

I don't even take the amount that I'm supposed to take. . . . We can't put money into our retirement. My husband has to work past [retirement age] because we can't afford to live.

She added:

This is a life or death drug. I have to have this drug to live.

Suzanne doesn't take insulin because she wants to. She takes insulin because she will die without it. Nobody should be forced to risk their health or their life by cutting back on the medications they need to survive.

Unfortunately, the pricing of prescription drugs in this country is the ultimate example of a rigged system. In 2018, there were 1,451 lobbyists for the pharmaceutical and health product industry. That is almost 15 lobbyists for every Member of the Senate. Their job is to stop competition and keep prices high. Our job is to unrig that system and bring prices down. The No. 1 way we can bring prices down is to let Medicare negotiate.

Currently, Medicare is prohibited, as we know, from harnessing the bargaining power of 43 million seniors in America to bring down prescription drug costs. Why aren't we harnessing the market price through negotiation? That doesn't make any sense.

When Medicare part D became law in 2003, that language was put in there to stop negotiation. It didn't make sense in 2003, and it doesn't make sense today.

We know negotiation can work because it works for the VA, or the Veterans' Administration. The Veterans' Administration negotiates prices, and they save about 40 percent compared to Medicare. In fact, according to a recent AARP analysis, Medicare could have saved $14.4 billion on just 50 drugs--$14.4 billion on just 50 drugs--if they had had the same prices as the VA, and this was in 2016--$14.4 billion.

In 2016, Medicare Part D plans spent $3 billion on a hepatitis C treatment, HARVONI. Under VA pricing, that cost would have been $1.7 billion. These are differences that are related to real money coming out of people's pockets when they are trying to just put food on the table and live their lives and be able to survive in many cases.

Medicare Part D plans spent $1.8 billion on REVLIMID, which treats multiple myeloma, a type of blood cancer. Under VA pricing, Medicare Part D and American taxpayers could have saved more than half a billion dollars. Given the potential for such huge savings, it is no surprise that the American people support allowing Medicare to negotiate drug prices.

I hear it everywhere I go: Why can't Medicare just negotiate and get a better deal--commonsense?

One recent poll showed that 92 percent of voters support allowing Medicare to negotiate with drug companies. Only Republicans in Congress and pharma lobbyists are stopping negotiation from moving forward. We need to change the system and put people before profits. We need to put people before profits.

The best way to do that is to allow Medicare to negotiate with the drug companies. That could make a big difference for people like Jack, who lives in Constantine. Jack was diagnosed with stage IV prostate cancer late last year. His oncologist wanted him to start taking a drug called Zytiga. It was going to cost an astonishing $15,000 for the first month.

A generic medication had become available, but after Medicare and supplemental insurance, Jack still would have to pay $3,400 the first month and more than $400 each month after that.

In his letter to me, Jack wrote this:

I just retired in June, moving back to Michigan to be closer to my family, and this cost . . . is an extreme hardship.

He added:

Getting pharmaceutical companies to reduce their price so an average retiree can afford to use them would be a great place to start. I hope and pray you and your colleagues on both sides of the aisle would be able to get something done so people who need the medication that they need to thrive and survive are able to get it.

Jack is right. He and Suzanne and other people like them across Michigan and across the country deserve better than what is happening right now. I could go on, and I will not, through price after price after price. The reality is prices are too high. We pay the highest prices in the world. Every other country gets involved in negotiating prices on behalf of their citizens.

The drug companies told me at a hearing that they make a profit in every other country but they make more here. They charge more here. Why? Because they can.

So it is time for us to work together to allow Medicare to negotiate drug prices and put people before profits.

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