Rep. John Lewis (D-GA) makes remarks about the need to lower the patients' cost of prescription drugs and invest in Medicare during a hearing of the Committee on Ways and Means. October 17, 2019
-- TRANSCRIPT --
CONGRESSMAN LEWIS:
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Chairman, I especially would like to thank Ms. Reid for being with us. I thank each one of you, but especially you, Ms. Reid. It is not easy to speak openly about our struggles, but you did it. I think you are very, very brave. Thank you for sharing your truth.
Ms. Reid, in your testimony today, you tell us to be brave, you tell us to be bold. You ask us to stand up for you and countless others who live in constant fear of economic ruin. You have more to lose than maybe anyone else in this room.
What will you say to people who are worried that this bill goes too far? And maybe costs too much?
MS. SAMANTHA REID, Patient, Crohn’s Disease:
Sure, so something I think is important to note about this bill is – I would like to push back a little bit on what Congressman Brady mentioned about cures.
I think that an important thing to note here is that the 8 to 15 drugs that the CBO suggests may not come to market in a reality where H.R. 3 is law is that the majority of new drugs that come to market are not cures – they are treatments.
As someone with a chronic illness, I am acutely aware of the fact that it is much more beneficial for pharmaceutical companies to create treatments that I will take every month for the rest of my life than it is for them to bring a cure to market.
I take – I think it's important to remember that we're not talking about a world where 8 to 15 cures for diseases don't come to market. In reality, we're more likely talking about a world where a drug company takes an already existing drug, changes the mechanism slightly, and brings it to market as a new FDA approval.
I think that this bill – If you think this bill goes too far, you're not living in the reality that patients are living in every day.
It's easy to say that these are potential trade-offs, but I think no one is better equipped to make those trade-offs than patients.
As the patient on this panel, I am willing to make some tradeoffs, because I think that – If 42% of cancer patients are financially depleted two years after treatment begins, what are we telling those patients? That you can have a medication that makes you better, but it will ruin the rest of your life?
I don’t think that’s a fair calculation to make patients make.
CONGRESSMAN LEWIS:
Dr. Feder, Congress must constantly think about the future, the next five or ten years, even the next century. It is harmful—is it harmful, neglectful, to miss this opportunity to invest in Medicare?
MS. JUDY FEDER, PhD, Professor, Georgetown University McCourt School of Public Policy:
It is absolutely harmful to miss this opportunity.
Medicare is one of our most valued social programs. It is loved by all. It has done an enormous benefit for our citizens by supporting, enabling older and disabled Americans to get adequate care.
But it is a benefit design that is largely shaped on what insurance benefits looked like in the 1960s and does not recognize all the other benefits or services that people need and that have become more expensive over time.
I think it is absolutely critical to take advantage of this opportunity to strengthen this most valuable program.
CONGRESSMAN LEWIS:
Thank you. Mr. Chairman, I yield back.
0 Comments