Trump addressing prescription drug prices, will sign executive orders
White House chief of staff says Americans will pay less for prescription drugs
President Donald Trump will issue three executive orders that will lower prescription drug prices, according to White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows.
“We’re talking about executive orders that will actually make a big difference, lowering prescription drug prices,” Meadows told "Lou Dobbs Tonight." “This president is going to do three different executive orders that will substantially make sure that the average American gets to pay less for their prescription drugs.”
Meadows did not say what exactly the content of these executive orders would be or when they would happen, but he has hinted at some action on prescription drug prices before.
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“We’re going to look at a number of issues as it relates to prescription drug prices and we’re going to get them done when Congress couldn’t get them done,” he told “Fox & Friends” on Monday.
Drug prices have been on the rise in recent years. A Consumer Reports survey from September found that nearly a third of Americans who take prescription medicine have seen out-of-pocket costs for a drug increase in the past year. Those people “were almost twice as likely to not fill a prescription, forgo other medical treatments or tests, cut back on groceries, or get a second job.”
The Kaiser Family Foundation, a nonprofit, found last year that 70 percent of Americans want Congress to work on legislation to lower prescription drug prices.
This year, multiple bills on prescription drug reform have been unveiled in both chambers of Congress, but none of them have made it to the President’s desk.
WHAT IS JOE BIDEN'S HEALTH CARE PLAN?
Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden addresses prescription drug costs in his sweeping health care plan, which he released last summer. The former vice president would allow Medicare to negotiate with drug companies for cheaper prices, allow consumers to buy prescription drugs from other countries, and limit price increases for most drugs to inflation.
“Too many Americans cannot afford their prescription drugs, and prescription drug corporations are profiteering off of the pocketbooks of sick individuals. The Biden Plan will put a stop to runaway drug prices and the profiteering of the drug industry,” the Biden campaign explains.