By Readers'
Forum Feb 3, 2020, 7:00pm MST By Jimie Guzman
Having four
children with health conditions that need medical care and treatment regularly,
I understand how overwhelming prescription drug prices and medical bills
become. I know I am not the only one. Utah patients have been struggling with
the out-of-control price of prescription drugs for a long time. But, despite
the escalating crisis of affordability, brand name manufacturers are back to “business as usual,” hiking prescription drug
prices to start the new year.
In just one year
alone, 44% of Utah residents stopped taking a
prescription drug as a result of the cost. Over five years, big pharma hiked
prices on prescription drugs in Utah by an average of 58%, while the average annual income rose just
8%.
Brand name
drugmakers can get away with this outrageous pricing behavior, in part, because
there is a lack of transparency around the industry’s pricing practices. Big
pharma can repeatedly hike prices without being held fully accountable by
policymakers and the public.
Utah patients
deserve open and honest drug pricing. That’s why I urge lawmakers in Salt Lake
City to support the Pharmaceutical Entity Transparency Act in the upcoming
legislative session.
In 2017, California
passed a similar measure. When that law took effect, several drugmakers
canceled or reduced planned price hikes. The success of the California
legislation has led a total of 16 states to adopt similar measures boosting
prescription drug transparency, including Oregon, Texas and Nevada.
Utahns can’t get
left behind. We need legislation to hold big pharma accountable and lower drug
prices now.
Jimie Guzman
Erda, Tooele County
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