Introducing Legislation on Drug Pricing

Floor Speech

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Mr. KHANNA. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to introduce as legislation President Trump's executive order for the most-favored-nation status on drug pricing.

My legislation will codify President Trump's executive order, which basically says that Americans should not pay more for drugs than people in other countries and other parts of the world.

Right now, we are paying two to three times more for our drugs than people in other industrialized nations. This executive order, codified by the legislation, will allow our Cabinet Secretaries to put pressure on Big Pharma and make sure that they are not price gouging and will allow for the importation of cheaper drugs.

Why do we need the legislation? The reality is that Big Pharma will sue over the executive order, like they did in the previous Trump administration. In the previous administration, they managed to kill the executive order. The only way we can stand up to Big Pharma is to codify legislation, which the President wants to do in an executive order.

Here is the deal. If I can cross the aisle and support President Trump's executive order and legislation, every Republican should be willing to cross the aisle and support my legislation.

It is a pretty simple test. Are we going to stand in this body with the $16 billion that Big Pharma spent on lobbying, or are we going to stand with the American people? We will know that answer based on how many cosponsors we get for my legislation that simply codifies Donald Trump's executive order. Opposing Medicaid and NIH Budget Cuts

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Mr. KHANNA. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to oppose the cruel budget cuts on Medicaid and NIH. I don't want to sensationalize. I just want to give some of the facts.

The Republican budget would cut $715 billion from Medicaid. They are going to freeze this thing called a provider tax, which means that the Federal Government is going to give $600 billion less to hospitals across this country.

That is going to mean, according to the independent Congressional Budget Office, that almost 8.6 million people will lose their insurance. It is going to mean that many hospitals won't be able to offer services in physical therapy and mental health counseling. It is going to mean, unfortunately, that rural hospitals close.

Don't take my word for it. Take the word of Senator Josh Hawley, who represents the State of Missouri. He said that these Medicaid cuts would be a total betrayal by the President and the Republican Party of the working class.

I never thought I would be quoting Josh Hawley, but everyone should read his op-ed. He was pretty clear that these cuts would be devastating for working families.

Look at the cuts to the NIH. A report released today by the Senate says there is already a 31 percent decrease in cancer research in this country. The NIH has been decimated with 30 percent effectiveness and almost a 40 percent cut. This is money that goes not just into cancer research but into Alzheimer's research and Parkinson's research.

We used to have a bipartisan consensus in this country that we did not cut Medicaid, that we did not cut medical research, and that we did not give more tax breaks in my district in Silicon Valley, to the billionaires in my district, at the expense of medical research and the working class.

Mr. Speaker, I hope people in this body will reconsider the cruel cuts to Medicaid.

I hope people in this body will reconsider the cruel cuts to Medicaid, the cruel cuts to NIH, and tax the billionaires in my district a little more so we don't have to cut these essential programs.

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