Martin Shkreli wants you to swallow his bitter pill — and to thank him for making you pay $750 for it. For 62 years, the drug Daraprim has been the standard method to treat parasitic infections that are particularly life-threatening to AIDS and cancer patients. It was relatively affordable — though low-income patients might take issue with calling an $18 pill “affordable” —Continue reading “Price-Gouging AIDS & Cancer Patients? By-Product of a Broken System”
Category Archives: prescription drugs
Bad Medicine Report Details Influence of Pharma in DC Budget Failure
Released to the Press September 25, 2013 New Report Analyzes Interest Group Influence in Blocking Proposed Cost Saving Measures in Medicare Report Finds Influence of Pharmaceutical Industry as Major Impasse to Common Sense Budget Fixes Congress has failed to act on a commonsense, good-government approach to controlling health care costs. The significant resources theContinue reading “Bad Medicine Report Details Influence of Pharma in DC Budget Failure”
The Great Big PhRMA Medicare Heist
Part 1: Rigging the System is Profitable While millions of Americans struggle to pay for their prescription medication, big pharmaceutical companies reap $600 billion in annual profits. $116 million is spent on direct lobbying, and with a 77,500% return, the investment certainly pays off. Profits have been bolstered by pharmaceutical companies’ myriad of policyContinue reading “The Great Big PhRMA Medicare Heist”
The Alliance Hosts Our First National Conference in Baltimore and DC
A week ago, to the day, the Alliance for A Just Society hosted our 2013 Summer Conference with all our national affiliates (#Justice2013). There was no better way to kick it off than taking close to 200 participants into Washington DC and hosting three separate actions on the Hill. As of this year, we areContinue reading “The Alliance Hosts Our First National Conference in Baltimore and DC”
Good Medicine: Better Rx Policies Addressed with Senate
Grassroots delegates from 10 states joined Senator Rockefeller’s office to host a town hall today at the Capitol Senate Budget Committee Room. Also supported by Budget Committee Chair Senator Patty Murray’s office, the town hall was held to address health disparities, the national budget and specifically the importance of the Medicare Prescription Drug Savings Act.Continue reading “Good Medicine: Better Rx Policies Addressed with Senate”
Big Pharma gets slapped by SCOTUS– What does it mean for the American taxpayer?
The Supreme Court in the Spotlight Again!? Really? Actually, this one kicked off last week’s “Week in SCOTUS”, coinciding with their 5th Circuit kick down on Affirmative Action in Texas, and predates both the DOMA and Voting Rights decisions.
Austerity versus Dignity for Senior Citizens: A Case for Strengthening Medicare
It seems we keep referencing Bill Daley’s recent post Has The Budget Crisis Du Jour Got You Down?. Maybe that’s because it gives you have a pretty good sense of the impending debt lid crisis that is due to hit in July, and that we need to be ready to push back against efforts toContinue reading “Austerity versus Dignity for Senior Citizens: A Case for Strengthening Medicare”
The Best Medicine at the Best Price: Pooling Rx Purchases in Idaho
Prescription drug costs are rising rapidly across the nation and in all types of health care programs. To deal with these costs, many states have started negotiating lower prescription drug prices from the extremely profitable pharmaceutical companies – and they are already saving money. Larger volume purchasers can negotiate larger savings, so states are creatingContinue reading “The Best Medicine at the Best Price: Pooling Rx Purchases in Idaho”
The Best Medicine at the Best Price: Pooling Rx Purchases in Washington State
Prescription drug costs are rising rapidly across the nation and in all types of health care programs. To deal with these costs, many states have started negotiating lower prescription drug prices from the extremely profitable pharmaceutical companies – and they are already saving money. Larger volume purchasers can negotiate larger savings, so states are creatingContinue reading “The Best Medicine at the Best Price: Pooling Rx Purchases in Washington State”
Idaho Lags Behind Region and Nation in Prescription Drug Savings
With prescription drug prices on the rise, more and more states are pooling the purchases of their state agencies and are joining together with other states to negotiate large prescription drug discounts. As this report details, numerous states are already saving substantial sums using purchasing pools. But Idaho lags behind the Northwest and the nationContinue reading “Idaho Lags Behind Region and Nation in Prescription Drug Savings”