National Breast Cancer Coalition, Members of Congress Urge Senate Action on Rx Market Access

WASHINGTON, D.C.—U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), U.S. Representatives Gil Gutknecht (R-MN), Dan Burton (R-IN), Rahm Emanuel (D-IL), Anne Northup (R-KY), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Rosa DeLauro (D-CT), Bernie Sanders (D-VT) and Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), along with Fran Visco, President of the National Breast Cancer Coalition (NBCC), and breast cancer patient Juanita Farkas joined to urge the Senate to take action this year on prescription drug market access. The House passed H.R. 2427, authored by Rep. Gutknecht and supported by a tri-partisan coalition of supporters, in July of 2003 by an overwhelming margin. 
 
“I am pleased to have the support of the National Breast Cancer Coalition. It’s people like Juanita Farkas, an 80-year old breast cancer patient who buys her drugs from Canada, who is standing on the shoulders of patriots,” Gutknecht said. “Her courage to stand up and say that the status quo isn’t good enough is an example for our friends in the Senate to follow. It’s simply unfair that American consumers are forced to pay three, four, five, even ten times as much for the same prescription drugs as our friends in Canada and Europe. This is a matter of basic fairness.”

“Unfortunately, many patients are unable to afford the life-saving medications that my organization and others have worked so hard to make available,” said NBCC President Fran Visco. “What good are ground-breaking research efforts like the Department of Defense Breast Cancer Research Program and the innovative work going on in academia and industry, if the results are not affordable for the patients who need them most?”

“I welcome the National Breast Cancer Coalition to the battle to allow safe, affordable prescription drugs to be reimported into the U.S.,” Stabenow said. “The Coalition’s presence here today is a striking reminder that it’s not just America’s seniors who bear a tremendous financial hardship when they must buy their life-saving prescription drugs. For victims of breast cancer, who are using such drugs as Arimidex, Aromasin, or Femara, the savings from buying these drugs in Canada instead of the U.S. can run from 27 to 40 percent, or from $700 to $1,000 annually for a single drug alone.”

“As someone who witnessed the devastating effects of cancer first-hand, I want to commend the National Breast Cancer Coalition for their commitment to fighting for affordable cancer treatment pharmaceuticals. I implore my colleagues in the Senate to finally take action, and pass legislation that allows American women who are suffering from breast cancer the right to access the life-saving drugs – like Tamoxifen – that they need at world market prices,” Burton added.

Emanuel said, “Many families know all too well the great physical toll cancer can take on them and their loved ones. The financial burden can be just as great. The costs of many cancer treatments are astronomical, and even individuals with good health insurance can face significant financial hardship as a result of cancer treatment. For patients who take certain drugs – for cancer and other illnesses – importation from Canada has provided access to drugs that they otherwise could not afford. This is the reason that polls consistently show that at least two thirds of Americans believe they should be able to import drugs from Canada and Europe.  Senator Frist may be able to avoid a vote on importation in the Senate, but he can’t make the issue go away.”

“The Fourth of July has come and gone. Labor Day is over. And still, Senate leadership tells us it's too late to address this issue. We are here to tell the Senate that the American people can no longer wait. We are here to tell the Senate that the time to act is now. We are here to tell the Senate to do its job,” Brown added.

“I am delighted to join other leaders in Congress and the National Breast Cancer Coalition to express our unity in the pursuit of affordable medicines. I will not ever forget the bus trip I took to Montreal, where women who were struggling with breast cancer were able to buy Tamoxifen, a widely prescribed breast cancer drug, at one tenth the price they were forced to pay at home. This is nothing short of a moral outrage and if the industry had any shame whatsoever it would have discontinued such egregious price-gouging on its own years ago,” Sanders said.