[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 75 (Wednesday, May 9, 2018)]
[House]
[Pages H3868-H3869]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1645
                       PRESCRIPTION DRUGS CRISIS

  (Mr. CICILLINE asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute.)
  Mr. CICILLINE. Mr. Speaker, prescription drug prices are rising at an 
unprecedented rate, unsustainable for most American families. In fact, 
Americans pay double what people in other countries pay for 
prescription drugs.
  Our per capita prescription drug spending is higher than any other 
country. That is why last July, Democrats outlined a bold new plan to 
give

[[Page H3869]]

the American people a better deal on prescription drug costs. Our plan 
cracks down on price gouging, allows Medicare to negotiate discounted 
prices, and requires new levels of transparency for big drug companies.
  But more than 10 months since Democrats offered a way forward, 
President Trump and Republicans are still silent. Instead of addressing 
this crisis, the President and his allies in Congress have made the 
problem even worse. They tried to take away healthcare from 23 million 
Americans on more than one occasion. They gave the pharmaceutical 
industry a huge tax cut, and they made it even harder for working men 
and women to get ahead.
  Democrats are putting the needs of working people first, ahead of big 
pharmaceutical companies, and we are going to keep fighting until the 
American people get a better deal on prescription drugs.

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