Statement by Senator Bernie Sanders on Prices for Prescription Drugs

WASHINGTON – Sen. Bernie Sanders issued the following statement Tuesday on his proposal to rein in skyrocketing prices for prescription drugs:

"The pharmaceutical industry has become a health hazard for the American people. We now pay, by far, the highest prices in the world for prescription drugs and 1 in 5 Americans – including patients suffering with cancer – cannot afford to fill the prescriptions their doctors write.

"The time is long overdue for Congress to listen to the needs of the American people and not the enormously-profitable pharmaceutical industry. The top three drug companies racked up $45 billion in profits last year after the industry doled out $250 million on lobbying and campaign contributions.

"In 1999, I was the first member of Congress to take Americans across the border to purchase lower-cost drugs in Canada. Americans should not have to leave their country to get affordable medicine. Congress must act now to allow the re-importation of low-cost prescription drugs and Medicare must negotiate drug prices with the pharmaceutical industry to save seniors and taxpayers billions of dollars."

To read more about Sen. Sanders prescription drug plan click here.