Farmers Union asks for affordable healthcare options
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News from the Montana Farmers Union
MONTANA — It’s no secret that lack of competition in healthcare has increased prices and reduces access to quality care. Nearly one in four Americans report difficulties paying for medication, and these high prices are partly the result of a lack of competition among drug manufacturers.
Americans pay more than 2.5 times as much for the same prescription drugs as their respective countries. The healthcare directive, signed by President Biden as part of the Promoting Competition in the American Economy Executive Order, includes increasing support for generic drugs, and combats high prescription drug prices and price gouging among drug companies.
In the Order, the President directs the Food and Drug Administration to work with states and tribes to safely import prescription drugs from Canada, pursuant to the Medicare Modernization Act of 2003; directs the Health and Human Services Administration to increase support for generic and biosimilar drugs, which provide low-cost options for patients; directs HHS to issue a comprehensive plan within 45 days to combat high prescription drug prices and price gouging; and encourages the FTC to ban “pay for delay” and similar agreements by rule.
“When it comes to healthcare, rural communities have it tougher than most,” said Walter Schweitzer, president of Montana Farmers Union. “We inherently deal with excessive distances to care, understaffed facilities and, typically, only basic health services at rural clinics. When you add excessive pricing for medication, it’s easy to see why the prohibitive cost of healthcare in rural communities is a real barrier to all producers. Services are few and far between, and prices keep getting higher. When people have to choose between paying for medicine and buying food, we have a big problem. Montana Farmers Union urges our leadership to continue to work toward more affordable options for all Americans.”
