Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar has described a new policy as “unleashing our Medicare Advantage plans to negotiate discounting on $12 billion of drugs.” Some patient advocacy groups have described the policy as one that “could erect barriers to care for cancer” and put “insurers in control of treatment decisions.” We’ll explain what the new policy entails.
It’s true, as President Trump says, that branded prescription drugs are generally cheaper outside the U.S. But he distorts the facts when he says, “as usual, the world is taking advantage of us.”
Claims by and about Donald Trump dominate our report.
A Hillary Clinton TV ad claims that “in the last seven years drug prices have doubled.” A report, provided by her campaign, says brand-name drug prices on average have more than doubled. But more than 80 percent of filled prescriptions are generic drugs.
Gauging by the attack ads flowing from the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, the party’s House contenders are running against Exxon, Pfizer and Bush. The ads tie Republican House candidates to unpopular industries and an unpopular President. Some of these ads are exaggerations.
GOP candidate Michael Steele misleadingly accuses Democratic Rep. Ben Cardin of taking “money from special interests” and then voting against importing cheaper prescription drugs from Canada.
The industry wages an $80-million campaign against a California ballot measure to require discounts on prescriptions for middle-income patients.
New ad claims Bush inherited an economy “already in recession” and that 41 million seniors “now have access to lower cost prescriptions.” Wrong on both counts.
Both candidates played loose with the facts at the second Presidential Debate in St. Louis Oct. 8. We offer a sampler of the dubious and sometimes false statements made by each of the candidates.