Sen. Blumenthal Works to Combat Increasing Prescription Drug Prices

U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Connecticut) is working to fight against skyrocketing drug prices. 

“Broken markets, lax regulation and unvarnished greed have resulted in skyrocketing prescription drug prices—hindering care and creating crushing medical costs for patients across Connecticut," Blumenthal said in a statement. "These unaffordable drug prices are hurting consumers, limiting health options and strangling our state and national economy. Neither our markets nor our regulators are working right now to ensure reliable affordable access to life-saving treatments—a catastrophic failure that must be addressed now. Through legislation, regulation and strong, proactive oversight, there must be an immediate crackdown on misuse of monopolistic power and price gouging,” Blumenthal said."

He was joined by State Comptroller Kevin Lembo, Hartford Hospital President and CEO Elliot Joseph and State Healthcare Advocate Victoria Veltri to discuss "the devastating impact that rising drug prices have on family budget, patient care and the state economy" Tuesday morning at Hartford Hospital. 

Blumenthal's staff said that Americans spent almost $300 billion on prescription drugs in 2014, marking about a 12 percent increase over the year before and "the largest overall increase in over a decade."

Over the past year, his office said prices for nearly every type of drugs went up another 10 percent. The average American spends as much as $570 out of pocket for prescription drugs annually, so Blumenthal's office said that can be burdensome on families and the national economy. 

Blumenthal was scheduled to unveil a plan Tuesday about how he would propose combating the rising costs of prescription drugs. 

Contact Us