In Albany this week, I met with representatives from Valley View, the county’s nursing home; school bus operators to discuss their legislative priorities; and youth organizations who are seeking funding in the budget to keep kids active in our community. Of great importance, though, is a package of bills that advanced through the Senate aimed at reducing the sky-high costs of prescription drug prices, including one that I authored.
This will likely come as a surprise to few reading this, but the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services reports that more than 4,200 drug products saw price increases from 2022-2023. The HHS reports that the average increase of drug prices throughout the course of that year was over 15%, well over the rate of inflation.
Access to appropriate and timely prescriptions can mean the difference between life and death, and no one should have to choose between paying for their medication or putting food on their table. My legislation, called the Wholesale Prescription Drug Importation bill (S.604), creates a wholesale program for prescription drugs to be imported from countries with consumer safety on
par with the U.S. drug supply chain. This allows us to drive down costs by increasing New York’s buying power. The State of Florida recently enacted similar legislation with significant success.
I have been fighting for years on behalf of Orange County patients and local pharmacies, and I will keep up the fight to make healthcare and prescription medicine more accessible and affordable for all New Yorkers. As we close out the first month of 2024, thank you for affording me the privilege of representing you in the State Senate.
