Prescription Drug Prices
When families in Northeast Ohio go to the pharmacy counter, they shouldn't have to choose between filling a prescription and paying their utilities. It's no secret that lawmakers have long allowed pharmaceutical companies and corporate middlemen to artificially inflate the cost of our healthcare.
PROBLEMS TO BE SOLVED
Some Ohioans face financial ruin to manage a chronic condition. The skyrocketing out-of-pocket costs for essential, life-saving medications like insulin, asthma inhalers, and EpiPens place an unacceptable burden on our working families and seniors.
Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs) are intermediary organizations who control nearly 80% of U.S. prescriptions. They routinely pocket the savings they negotiate with drug manufacturers instead of passing those discounts down to patients at the pharmacy counter.
Recent state legislation failed to protect local, independent pharmacies. PBMs are still legally allowed to reimburse our own Geauga and Ashtabula county pharmacies at lower rates than their own corporate-affiliated chains, driving businesses out of the market.
Goals
Fight for aggressive state-level price caps on life-saving medications to immediately relieve the financial pressure on patients and seniors who rely on treatments.
Support state legislation requiring PBMs to direct 100% of all negotiated manufacturer rebates directly to the consumer at point of sale.
Reintroduce anti-differential reimbursement rules so pharmacies are not priced out of the market by predatory practices.
We need a representative who understands that a bill is not a win if the most important consumer protections are stripped out. By demanding true accountability for PBMs we can protect our local businesses, support our seniors, and lower healthcare costs for everyone in the district.