[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 177 (Wednesday, November 6, 2019)]
[Senate]
[Page S6411]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        PRESCRIPTION DRUG COSTS

  Mr. GRASSLEY. Oh boy, I have had to scratch my head upon hearing some 
criticism of the Finance Committee's Prescription Drug Pricing 
Reduction Act from supposedly fiscally conservative, pro-taxpayer 
organizations, to mention a couple, like FreedomWorks and Americans for 
Tax Reform.
  The Grassley-Wyden bipartisan bill ought to have a lot of support. It 
would save taxpayers more than $100 billion. You would think fiscally 
conservative organizations would want to back that. Of course, some of 
these fiscally conservative organizations receive substantial funding 
from Big Pharma.
  I can't think of a better opportunity to enact bipartisan entitlement 
reform that would significantly lower the debt and help rein in 
entitlement spending bill. This bill happens to be judged by the 
Congressional Budget Office, a nonpartisan group working for the 
Congress as a whole, saying that it would save a little over $100 
billion.
  Reining in entitlement spending is a goal that I campaigned on, and 
nearly every one of my Republican colleagues have campaigned on that 
same platform. Now is the chance to carry out those campaign promises, 
in other words, to stand on the platform you ran on.
  In an era of gridlock and partisanship, do supporters of less 
government spending and balanced budgets really think their goal could 
be achieved without bipartisanship? Nothing gets done in the U.S. 
Senate that isn't somewhat bipartisan. The good news is that my 
legislation is bipartisan, and support for the bill is growing every 
day.
  I yield the floor.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The senior assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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