(MENAFN) On Sunday, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders spoke out against the greed of pharmaceutical companies, particularly in light of upcoming price hikes for COVID-19 vaccines. He called for bipartisan efforts to bring down costs for working-class Americans, pointing to the need for decisive action in Congress.
Sanders, who chairs the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, recently called on Moderna's CEO to testify before the committee after the company suggested it would quadruple the price of COVID-19 vaccines once they transition to the private market. He noted that the U.S. government gave Moderna billions of dollars to develop its vaccine, and questioned what will happen once the government stockpile of the vaccine expires.
Sanders highlighted the fact that the pharmaceutical industry is charging Americans outrageously high prices, making healthcare and prescription medications unaffordable and inaccessible for many. He noted that one out of four Americans cannot afford the drugs that their doctors prescribe, and roughly two-thirds are living paycheck to paycheck. He also pointed to stark disparities in cost for the same medications in countries with public health systems, like Canada, compared with the U.S.
Despite these challenges, Sanders believes there is room for bipartisan agreement on prescription drug costs in Congress. He cited polling that showed high prescription drug costs were a major concern for Republicans, and proposed the Inflation Reduction Act and other legislative proposals as potential avenues for bipartisan work. The Inflation Reduction Act, signed into law by President Biden in August 2021, reformed how Medicare sets drug prices and could serve as a guide for further, broader legislation regulating the cost of prescription drugs.
Sanders proposed several solutions, including Medicare negotiating prices with the pharmaceutical industry, expediting the Inflation Reduction Act, and exploring the concept of reimportation, which would allow Americans to purchase drugs from Canada at a lower price. He believes that the pharmaceutical industry needs to stop ripping off the American people, and that bipartisan action is necessary to address the issue.
In conclusion, Sanders called for decisive action in Congress to address high prescription drug prices and to hold the pharmaceutical industry accountable for its actions. He emphasized the need for bipartisanship to bring down costs for working-class Americans and highlighted potential solutions that could form the basis for bipartisan work.
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