New Democrat Coalition Health Care Task Force Statement on Drug Pricing Legislation
New Democrat Coalition (NDC) Chair Derek Kilmer, NDC Vice Chair Suzan DelBene, NDC Leadership Member Ami Bera, and NDC Health Care Task Force Co-Chairs, Reps. Angie Craig, Kurt Schrader, Kim Schrier, and Greg Stanton, released the following statement on H.R. 3, the Lower Drug Costs Now Act:
“The New Democrat Coalition supports efforts to lower drug prices, bring more options to market, and create transparency. We look forward to reviewing the proposal the Speaker and Committee Chairs put forward and are encouraged by the continued commitment to address this pressing issue and improve the lives of millions of Americans. We appreciate that the Chairs have committed to moving this proposal through regular order in the committees. As we learned from our meeting with Secretary Azar, we have a real opportunity to do something meaningful and bipartisan on drug pricing that the President will sign into law.”
Earlier this Congress, the House passed the New Democrat Coalition-supported H.R. 987, the Strengthening Health Care and Lowering Prescription Drug Costs Act. This package included several individual New Dem-introduced and endorsed bills, including the bills that would lower prescription drug pricing, including H.R. 965, the CREATES Act (Rep. Cicilline), H.R. 938, the BLOCKING Act (Rep. Schrader), and H.R. 1499, the Protecting Consumer Access to Generic Drugs Act (Rep. Rush). New Dems also urged House leaders to prioritize strengthening the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and continue the path toward affordable universal coverage. New Dems have been heartened by Democratic Leadership’s steps to undo the sabotage done to the ACA, and look forward to building on this work through the legislative progress of our Members.
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