Affordable Prescription Drugs for Florida

WHEREAS, to protect our lives and our well-being, every family in Florida requires access to affordable prescription drugs;

 

WHEREAS, skyrocketing costs are making some medicines virtually inaccessible to our families and neighbors;

 

WHEREAS, overall drug prices increased almost 9% in 2016 while general inflation increased just over 2% in the same period, and since 2013 drug prices have risen and average of 10% annually but inflation has only increased 1.2% on average since 2013;

 

WHEREAS, prescription drug spending accounted for over 22% of each health insurance premium dollar in 2014, and nearly a quarter of people in their deductible period never picked up their prescriptions from the pharmacy, presumably because of the cost;

 

WHEREAS, over half of Medicare beneficiaries who did not feel at least one prescription reported prohibitive costs as the reason, and that non-adherence results in an estimated $100-300 billion of avoidable health care costs annually;

 

WHEREAS, Florida has had a significant incentive to address the affordability of prescription drugs, because of our growing senior population and high rates of chronic disease and pre-existing conditions;

 

THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the undersigned individuals and organizations support innovative and common sense solutions to address the cost of prescription drugs in Florida. State lawmakers should pass meaningful legislation that limits the costs of commonly used drugs and develop a process to explore the impact of high prices.