Bilirakis: “We must work to bring down the high price of prescription drugs”

Washington, D.C. – U.S. Representative Gus Bilirakis (FL-12) took to the House floor today to speak in support of his bill, the Lower Drug Costs Through Competition Act (H.R. 749). The issue of high drug prices was highlighted by President Trump during his Joint Address remarks. Tomorrow, the Lower Drug Costs Through Competition Act will be considered at an Energy and Commerce Committee hearing.

See below for Bilirakis' full speech.

"As President Trump remarked in his Joint Address, we must work to bring down the high price of prescription drugs.

"Too often we have seen the price of lifesaving medication skyrocket due to bad actors taking advantage of monopolies in the market.

"We witnessed it in 2015 when Turing Pharmaceuticals hiked the price of Daraprim, a drug to treat HIV patients. And we saw it again with Mylan Pharmaceuticals raising the cost of the EpiPen by 400%. We cannot allow this to continue.

"I am proud to join my colleague Congressman Kurt Schrader to introduce the Lower Drug Costs Through Competition Act. Our bill is a bipartisan approach to tackle the issue of high drug costs head on. Our legislation uses the free market to incentivize competition among drug makers, encouraging them to bring new generic drugs to market.

"My constituents in Florida and folks nationwide need relief. Let's get this done. Thank you."