Rx op-ed by AARP NYS President Leo Asen
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High prescription drug
costs are a big problem for
New Yorkers, especially our
older residents - and most so
for older New Yorkers of color.
We have a great opportunity
to do something about it
here in New York, and soon.
Governor Andrew Cuomo
has proposed as part of the
state budget due April 1 an Rx
Price Control Board to investigate
unconscionable increases
in prescription drug prices.
This would get at the root of
the Rx affordability problem:
the actual list prices of drugs,
which are set by big PhRMA
itself.
Someone has to stop these
spiraling prices. AARP fully
supports Governor Cuomo in
his effort to do so, and we urge
state lawmakers to support an
Rx Control Board as part of the
final budget.
We’re also urging lawmakers
to include in the final budget
an expansion of the state’s
Elderly Pharmaceutical Insurance
Coverage Program
(EPIC) to make affordable
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drugs accessible to more older
New Yorkers.
Now more than ever, access
to affordable medications is
paramount.
But it won’t be easy; PhRMA
spares little expense on its lobbying
efforts, yet taxpayers
and everyone who pays into
health insurance bears the
cost of America’s highest-inthe
world drug prices through
premiums, cost-sharing and
higher taxes.
We can begin to attack these
out-of-control prices right here
in New York.
Americans on Medicare
Part D take 4.5 prescriptions
a month on average, and costs
can add up. In fact, the average
annual cost of prescription
drug treatment increased over
five times faster than the average
New Yorker’s annual income
from 2012 to 2017.
And those increased costs
disproportionately hit older
New Yorkers of color.
AARP recently launched
the second phase of our effort
to “Disrupt Racial & Ethnic
Disparities” for New Yorkers
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50+, and the new research documents
a problem New Yorkers
know too well.
Over a recent year, 23% of
American voters age 50 and
over did without a prescription,
but it was a staggering
41% among similarly aged
African Americans and 32%
among Hispanic/Latinos.
Drilling down on the diabetes
fighting drug insulin, over
20% of African Americans and
Hispanic/Latinos didn’t fill
their diabetes prescriptions
because of cost, compared to
14% of Whites.
That’s already unacceptable,
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but if drug prices continue
rising, it will get even
worse.
That’s why we’re urging
state lawmakers and the Governor
to act.
AARP and dozens of consumer,
patient, and health
organizations, including the
Hispanic Federation, NAACP
of New York, New York Urban
League and Asian American
Federation, sent a letter to Senate
Majority Leader Andrea
Stewart-Cousins and Assembly
Speaker Carl Heastie urging
them to support establishment
of an Rx Control Board
and an expansion of EPIC in
this year’s final state budget.
We’re advocating additional
measures too, including:
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lation sponsored by Senator
Alessandra Biaggi and Assemblyman
Michael DenDekker
of New York City, whose bill
would require disclosure of
deals in which manufacturers
of brand name prescription
drugs pay generic drug manufacturers
to delay introduction
of less expensive generic alternatives
to the market – by 17
months on average;
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sulin co-payments for insured
patients, as the Governor has
also proposed, and;
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cost prescription drugs from
Canada, as the Governor is exploring.
All of these proposals
would help New Yorkers afford
the medications they depend
on, in some cases to save
their lives. All are linked, and
all must be addressed to solve
the Rx affordability problem
in our state.
AARP members from
around the state have been
traveling to the state Capitol
and to state lawmakers’ district
offices to make sure our
state lawmakers hear our message
loud and clear.
Now is the time; the Governor
and Legislature must work
together to address price, access
to affordable lifesaving
drugs, and Rx transparency.
Leo Asen of New York City
is AARP New York’s Volunteer
State President.
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