In 2020, five of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the U.S. made $44.9 billion in profits.
By Michael V. Cusenza
On Friday, U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand stood with Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer, Maria Alvarez, Executive Director of the NY Statewide Senior Action Council, Mario Henry, Executive Board Member of the NY Statewide Senior Action Council, and Tim Clune, Executive Director of Disability Rights New York, to announce a package of three bills to help reduce the cost of prescription drugs, and help ensure that everyone can access the medicine they need.
The package of bills, led by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), includes: The Medicare Drug Price Negotiation Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to negotiate lower prices for prescription drugs under Medicare Part D; The Prescription Drug Price Relief Act which looks to level the market for Americans purchasing prescription drugs by pegging the price in the United States to the median price in Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Germany and Japan; and The Affordable and Safe Prescription Drug Importation Act to allow patients, pharmacists and wholesalers to import safe, affordable medicine from Canada and other major countries.