The Gazette - Ernst: Lower prescription drug costs, work together toward solutions

Op-Ed

By Joni Ernst

Every year, I complete what I call my 99 County Tour, where I hold town halls and meet with Iowans in every single one of our 99 counties. Throughout the year, every year, there's plenty of issues Iowans tell me they're concerned about. Topics range from finalizing trade deals like the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) to ensuring our veterans get the care and benefits they deserve.

But, as I've been out talking directly with folks in the last year -- from the most rural parts of our state to some of our heaviest populated regions -- the one topic I hear about consistently is the need to address the cost of health care, specifically when it comes to prescription drugs.

This issue hits close to home for me: I've got a sister and brother who both need insulin for their Type 1 diabetes. But it's not just my family. So many Iowans across the state need Congress to do something. Our families shouldn't have to choose between making a mortgage payment and actually purchasing and utilizing lifesaving prescriptions.

Addressing these growing costs has been a top priority for me. Over the last year, I've worked across the aisle toward solutions to increase competition, drive down costs, and close the loopholes that allow bad actors to take advantage of the system. We also need to ensure that researchers can keep creating new and lifesaving drugs. These much-needed reforms are critical to making health care more affordable for Iowans.

I'm glad to report that we've made some progress in the last few months in starting to bring down these costs.

One of the bipartisan bills I supported, the CREATES Act, was passed successfully by the Senate and signed into law by President Donald Trump. This bipartisan legislation, which is now law, is designed to help drive down costs by increasing competition in the marketplace. The CREATES Act prevents brand-name pharmaceutical and biologic companies from purposely stifling competition by blocking the entry of lower-cost generic drugs into the market.

But that's just a start. There's no question we have more work ahead.

As many of you know, my good friend and colleague and Iowa's senior senator, Chuck Grassley, has been a steadfast champion for addressing prescription drug costs. Sen. Grassley, joined by Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon, is leading a bipartisan proposal, called the Prescription Drug Pricing Reduction Act, to go after these skyrocketing prices.

Source