[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 149 (2003), Part 13]
[House]
[Page 17586]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                     PRESCRIPTION DRUGS IN AMERICA

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Eddie Bernice Johnson) is recognized for 5 
minutes.
  Ms. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to 
address the most important issue of prescription drug cost. As a former 
nurse, I am committed to making sure that seniors have the drugs they 
need to stay healthy without having to make painful choices between 
buying groceries or paying rent or getting prescriptions filled or even 
paying their utility bills.
  As the Medicare issue continues to be debated in Congress, I have 
always supported what is best that I felt for working people of 
America. I understand that Medicare provides for so many who have 
provided so much to our Nation and continue to do so, and I believe 
sincerely that Medicare should have a provision to work with the 
pharmaceutical companies, to get discounts just as the discounts are 
received prior to the senior citizens turning 65.
  In a study conducted nationwide, Advance PCS found that the average 
person over 65 fills about 20 prescriptions per year compared to about 
three per year for a person in their 20s. This study shows that average 
cost per prescription for a person in his or her late 60s is about 45 
percent higher than the average cost per prescription for a person in 
their 20s. Brandeis University reported that the percentage of elderly 
spending more than $3,000 annually on medication more than doubled from 
1997 to 1999, from 3.7 percent to 8.6 percent. The U.S. Census Bureau 
estimates that the over-65 population will increase by an average of 
304,400 people each year between 2000 and 2005. According to Families 
USA, the average cost per prescription for seniors has already risen 
during that time in the past 8 years by 48 percent.
  It is for these reasons that we must address the high cost of 
prescription drugs for our seniors. Unfortunately, legislation recently 
passed in this House does not entitle seniors to any particular drug 
benefit plan. Instead, the Republican-backed Medicare Prescription Drug 
and Modernization Act of 2003 provides only a standard benefit and is 
merely a suggestion for what private plans might offer. This plan 
provides no assistance for prescription drug cost between $2,000 and 
$5,600 per year, and nearly half of all of our seniors have 
prescription drug expenses over $2,000 annually.
  Democrats know that the American seniors have waited long enough for 
relief from the Nation's skyrocketing prescription drug prices. 
Unfortunately, we are not giving our seniors an affordable and 
dependable plan with no gaps in coverage. Instead, the Republican 
leadership has chosen to hijack the democratic process yet again by 
blocking our party's attempts to provide a commonsense prescription 
drug benefit through the Medicare program. By shutting down opposition, 
rather than allowing an open debate, the Republican leadership is 
making it clear that they are afraid to compare their sham prescription 
benefit plan to the Democratic substitute. When the plans are put side 
by side, the American public sees that the Republican plan fails to 
provide any substantive benefits. The public will see that their plan's 
benefits are so insignificant that it would not be worthwhile for many 
middle-class seniors to enroll. The Republican plan does nothing to 
curtail the exploding drug prices because of their ties to the 
pharmaceutical industry, and that is a matter of record that can be 
checked.
  Providing affordable prescription drug coverage should be an issue 
that transcends partisanship. The American public should be outraged 
that the Republican leadership is playing politics with the health and 
well-being of millions of our seniors, and I hope the voters will 
remember their shameful abuse of power when they go to the polls next 
November.

                          ____________________