As a family physician, and now as a state senator, I hear from people all over about how expensive their prescription medication is, and how it’s getting harder and harder to afford. This is especially true for the seniors in our communities. It’s heartbreaking to hear about Mainers who have worked hard their whole lives but now debate skipping doses of their prescriptions, or wonder if they’ll have to choose between paying for their medicine or their mortgage.
I’m happy to say I’m working with my colleagues in the Senate to help solve this problem. A few weeks ago, we introduced a package of bills that aims to take on the tangled pharmaceutical industry from several angles.
Senate President Troy Jackson, D-Allagash, has submitted two bills that would make it easier to import quality prescription drugs from Canada. We know pharmaceutical companies sell prescription drugs there at much lower prices than what’s available here; Mainers should be able to take advantage of those prices. Another bill from Jackson would create a Prescription Drug Affordability Board to help make sure companies are not price-gouging customers.
A bill from Assistant Senate Majority Leader Eloise Vitelli, D-Arrowsic, would build on a law passed last year to increase transparency in drug pricing. This bill asks pharmaceutical companies to report about drugs that saw the biggest price hike in the last year. Were they spending money on improved research and development? Or did a lot of that money just go to paying for television commercials? If your medications are getting so much harder to afford, I think you deserve to know why.
Sen. Heather Sanborn, D-Portland, who serves as chair of the Legislature’s Health Coverage, Insurance and Financial Services Committee, has submitted a bill that would provide increased oversight and transparency for pharmacy benefit managers — one of the many middlemen your medication has to pass through. This bill also would make sure any discounts pharmacy benefit managers receive from drug companies are shared with you, the consumer. I think that’s only fair. Further, this bill came out of recommendations from the Legislature’s Health Care Task Force.
I know that this drug package is an ambitious undertaking. But we need a comprehensive approach to solve this complex problem. To help people better understand the problem, and to give you a space to talk about your own experiences, AARP Maine is hosting a series of community conversations about prescription drug prices. Locally, one of these discussions is scheduled for 10-11:30 a.m. Friday, April 19, at Scarborough Grounds in Scarborough. Another is planned for 10-11:30 a.m. Monday, April 22, at Tory Hill Cafe in Buxton. I hope you’ll be able to attend.
If you can’t make it to either one of these community discussions (I know we’re all busy these days), I’d still like to hear from you. You can contact me about this issue, or any other, via email or call my office at the State House.
Linda Sanborn is serving her first term in the Maine Senate, representing Senate District 30, which includes Gorham, part of Buxton, and part of Scarborough. She previously served four terms in the Maine House, and practiced family medicine in Gorham for 25 years. Senator Sanborn lives in Gorham with her husband, Jeff, a Gorham native. They have three adult sons and one granddaughter.
(207) 287-1515 | Linda.Sanborn@Legislature.Maine.gov