Trump: Prescription Drug and Pharmaceutical prices will be REDUCED, almost immediately, by 30% to 8

[bigheadfred]

Relax people. Your Big Pharma owned politicians will make sure you are all paying out the ass for your prescriptions. 

[Free Vulcan]

I understand it’s part of our tribal nature that makes it difficult to oppose stupid ideas coming from people we politically support, but if all else was the same, but this was coming from a president Harris versus a president Trump, you would be agreeing with me


And it’s not just this issue. That’s why there’s such hostility here towards people who have not changed their positions just to accommodate the Trump agenda.

Again, side stepping and jazz hands. You have no counterpoint, so you deflect.

[Free Vulcan]

So 'Socialize' ourselves? How the hell does that work?
'Jazz hands', bruh?

I'm not sure how you consider it to be socializing when all we're asking is to be treated like every other country.

The fact is we pay the gap between what they pay and what the manufacturer desires. It's a tax and it busts the budget, and by accepting it we give them tacit approval for their socialized health care..

We have the right as the largest consumer to seek the lowest price. There is no fixing prices because the price will float as the company requests a price to make a profit. All that is being asked is that everyone pays at the same rate.

[Bigun]

I'm not sure how you consider it to be socializing when all we're asking is to be treated like every other country.

The fact is we pay the gap between what they pay and what the manufacturer desires. It's a tax and it busts the budget, and by accepting it we give them tacit approval for their socialized health care..

We have the right as the largest consumer to seek the lowest price. There is no fixing prices because the price will float as the company requests a price to make a profit. All that is being asked is that everyone pays at the same rate.

  Just another form of foreign aid.

[roamer_1]

Again, side stepping and jazz hands. You have no counterpoint, so you deflect.

No, you're just wrong. Different prices in different markets are a product of what each market will bear. It also must allow for differences in insurance and regulation, and a host of other factors.

Ivermectin as an instance is sold by the bucket in South America, and sold over the counter without prescription. It costs less than an American penny per hit.

Is it cheaper there because that's all they could get for it there, or because it suffers less regulation, or because it is sold by bulk... Or all of the above?

But that's not enough.

Now look at why it is so expensive here (comparatively) and why it has been so hard to get. What are the factors here causing that? Over regulation plays a big part in that since covid. Doctors are still scared to prescribe it too. Does that have anything to do with its cost here? I bet it does.

The problem with price fixing is that it ordains a price WITHOUT FIXING the underlying problems that are propping that price up, which in health and medicine are multitudinous.

You lot have fallen for liberal finger pointing techniques - EEEEEEVIL Big Pharma - Just like liberals need to identify a culprit, this is the very same thing. When in reality, MANY causes are at work. Rather than spending our time sussing that out, it is far easier to point that finger and mark that demon.

Don't get me wrong... I have no love of Big Pharma, as you should well know - You and I have traded folk medicine in the past. But Tumpy's position, and yours, are wrongheaded.

[mystery-ak]

Rand Paul: Drug Price Controls Create Shortages, Like They Do in Europe

Ian Hanchett 13 May 2025

On Monday’s broadcast of the Fox News Channel’s “Jesse Watters Primetime,” Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) argued that imposing government price controls on prescription drugs will lead to shortages and this is what happens in Europe.

Paul said, [relevant remarks begin around 5:25] “The thing is, is if you want prices to be low and you say the government should just make them fair or low, Venezuela’s got a great example of this, and there they’ve had price controls on everything. But you know what? They don’t have anything. Price controls lead to shortages. And so, in the European countries that have price controls, they’re lower because the government mandates that the price can’t be the market price. And so, they do get a better deal, but they do it by force and by mandate. But what you end up having is a regulated market. So, if you want the fat shot, you’ve got to go to the government doctor. You may get it, you may not get it, but you don’t go and just get the medicine you want if a doctor will prescribe it, you have to get permission from the government. They’ll make you take the cheaper variety for a couple of years. If you need a heart surgery, you may be dead by the time you get it. That’s the European system, that’s socialism, and I want no part of it. I don’t like high prices, but I think there are ways to bring prices down.”

He continued, “What I’ve suggested, and Donald Trump agreed with me in the last administration, is something called associated health plans, where you join like Costco or Sam’s Club, and 44 million members then get someone to negotiate for them and they bring prices down that way. That’s the market doing it. If you do it by government fiat, you’ll end up with shortages. And I don’t want to be Venezuela.”

https://www.breitbart.com/clips/2025/05/13/rand-paul-drug-price-controls-create-shortages-like-they-do-in-europe/

[Free Vulcan]

No, you're just wrong. Different prices in different markets are a product of what each market will bear. It also must allow for differences in insurance and regulation, and a host of other factors.

Ivermectin as an instance is sold by the bucket in South America, and sold over the counter without prescription. It costs less than an American penny per hit.

Is it cheaper there because that's all they could get for it there, or because it suffers less regulation, or because it is sold by bulk... Or all of the above?

But that's not enough.

Now look at why it is so expensive here (comparatively) and why it has been so hard to get. What are the factors here causing that? Over regulation plays a big part in that since covid. Doctors are still scared to prescribe it too. Does that have anything to do with its cost here? I bet it does.

The problem with price fixing is that it ordains a price WITHOUT FIXING the underlying problems that are propping that price up, which in health and medicine are multitudinous.

You lot have fallen for liberal finger pointing techniques - EEEEEEVIL Big Pharma - Just like liberals need to identify a culprit, this is the very same thing. When in reality, MANY causes are at work. Rather than spending our time sussing that out, it is far easier to point that finger and mark that demon.

Don't get me wrong... I have no love of Big Pharma, as you should well know - You and I have traded folk medicine in the past. But Tumpy's position, and yours, are wrongheaded.

No price though will be fixed. The company can request all it wants, all we have to ask as the largest consumer is that we get the best deal or at least an equal deal. We haven't done so be cause it's other countries price fixing that forces us to make up the difference.

I see no problem in negotiating for the price we should be getting in the first place. We currently are imposing a huge tax on the country and the cost is trillions added to ours and the govt's pockets.

[roamer_1]

I'm not sure how you consider it to be socializing when all we're asking is to be treated like every other country.

Oh bullcrap. *NOTHING* has one price worldwide. There is your first mistake.
And price fixing is always a Socialist tactic. It is quite literally capping the price a product can make according to a government whim. That IS socialism. Socialism is business/industry being directed/controlled by government.

When your solution is the very same as your enemy's you have become them, no matter how noble the cause. And believe me, liberty is lost to noble causes, almost every time.

The fact is we pay the gap between what they pay and what the manufacturer desires. It's a tax and it busts the budget, and by accepting it we give them tacit approval for their socialized health care..

NO. That is not the fact. PROVE IT..

We have the right as the largest consumer to seek the lowest price. There is no fixing prices because the price will float as the company requests a price to make a profit. All that is being asked is that everyone pays at the same rate.

No they won't float. It takes no consideration of economy or regulation. It takes no consideration of quality control and authenticity.

If you want cheap meds, then open the US market to the world and let competition do its thing. Attack patent herding. allow cheaper manufacturers. Whether you know it or not, you can't have your cake and eat it too, which is what you are trying to do.

[roamer_1]

No price though will be fixed. The company can request all it wants, all we have to ask as the largest consumer is that we get the best deal or at least an equal deal. We haven't done so be cause it's other countries price fixing that forces us to make up the difference.

'WE' being the US gubbmint. And whether the price floats or not, it is still price fixing. It is capping out a lucrative market in the US according to prices in Africa where the 'best deal' is...

I see no problem in negotiating for the price we should be getting in the first place. We currently are imposing a huge tax on the country and the cost is trillions added to ours and the govt's pockets.

That assumes one price world wide, That assumes that the government should be the decider (which is never, never a good thing). That assumes that market forces here are the same as elsewhere. None of that is true. It is not cheap prices elsewhere that drive costs here. It is the expensive and over-regulated market here that causes the high price - and you are entirely missing that by blaming others.

You will not fix it. What will happen is that the prices will drop into the basement and the product will dry up because it is no longer worth making, or it will command a better profit elsewhere and that's where the market will go. That is what will happen. Predictably. Watch and see.

[LMAO]

Rand Paul: Drug Price Controls Create Shortages, Like They Do in Europe

Ian Hanchett 13 May 2025

On Monday’s broadcast of the Fox News Channel’s “Jesse Watters Primetime,” Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) argued that imposing government price controls on prescription drugs will lead to shortages and this is what happens in Europe.

Paul said, [relevant remarks begin around 5:25] “The thing is, is if you want prices to be low and you say the government should just make them fair or low, Venezuela’s got a great example of this, and there they’ve had price controls on everything. But you know what? They don’t have anything. Price controls lead to shortages. And so, in the European countries that have price controls, they’re lower because the government mandates that the price can’t be the market price. And so, they do get a better deal, but they do it by force and by mandate. But what you end up having is a regulated market. So, if you want the fat shot, you’ve got to go to the government doctor. You may get it, you may not get it, but you don’t go and just get the medicine you want if a doctor will prescribe it, you have to get permission from the government. They’ll make you take the cheaper variety for a couple of years. If you need a heart surgery, you may be dead by the time you get it. That’s the European system, that’s socialism, and I want no part of it. I don’t like high prices, but I think there are ways to bring prices down.”

He continued, “What I’ve suggested, and Donald Trump agreed with me in the last administration, is something called associated health plans, where you join like Costco or Sam’s Club, and 44 million members then get someone to negotiate for them and they bring prices down that way. That’s the market doing it. If you do it by government fiat, you’ll end up with shortages. And I don’t want to be Venezuela.”

https://www.breitbart.com/clips/2025/05/13/rand-paul-drug-price-controls-create-shortages-like-they-do-in-europe/

I believe Rand Paul would’ve been an excellent Presidential candidate. There’s just no chance he would’ve gotten the nomination in today’s GOP

[LMAO]

Relax people. Your Big Pharma owned politicians will make sure you are all paying out the ass for your prescriptions. 

The courts will probably say no to this first

[Free Vulcan]

Oh bullcrap. *NOTHING* has one price worldwide. There is your first mistake.
And price fixing is always a Socialist tactic. It is quite literally capping the price a product can make according to a government whim. That IS socialism. Socialism is business/industry being directed/controlled by government.

When your solution is the very same as your enemy's you have become them, no matter how noble the cause. And believe me, liberty is lost to noble causes, almost every time.

If that is the case then, why do we get the worst deal for the exact same product made by the exact same company though we are the largest volume consumer? What is the regulation that requires that? That's the standard pricing model turned on it's head. Why should we continue to operate like that?

NO. That is not the fact. PROVE IT..

It's self evident and a recognized problem for years. Other country's socialized health care limits the price by fiat, we make up the difference. While I'm not a fan of Medicaid and Medicare, the fact is that they exist and they allow this to go on, and it costs the taxpayer trillions too much.

No they won't float. It takes no consideration of economy or regulation. It takes no consideration of quality control and authenticity.

If you want cheap meds, then open the US market to the world and let competition do its thing. Attack patent herding. allow cheaper manufacturers. Whether you know it or not, you can't have your cake and eat it too, which is what you are trying to do.

We're comparing on a same product basis. The cost of the product is already baked into the cake, there is no reason that when it goes out all over the world that somehow we must pay 10X or more of some other country, there is nowhere in the cost structure of that distribution chain that can justify us being singled out.

Generic meds may alleviate some of that problem, but we are still going to pay the bulk of the cost. Other govts are price fixing those as well.

I'm all for letting foreign generics in if they can meet quality standards. The problem is many foreign companies and govts take short cuts.

[roamer_1]

A question for you folks...

Why can't you go online and buy your Elequis (for instance) from Costa Rica (for instance)? It is about an eighth of the price down there... Made in Mexico... Why can't you just go on Amazon and find that?

Is it Big Pharma that is stopping you? I don't think so.

[bigheadfred]

The courts will probably say no to this first

Well, this would be the second time the courts ruled in disfavor. Couple that with Rand's statement " “What I’ve suggested, and Donald Trump agreed with me in the last administration, is something called associated health plans..." it appears (from 30,000 feet) that Trump is trying to lead the horse to water.   

[bigheadfred]

A question for you folks...

Why can't you go online and buy your Elequis (for instance) from Costa Rica (for instance)? It is about an eighth of the price down there... Made in Mexico... Why can't you just go on Amazon and find that?

Is it Big Pharma that is stopping you? I don't think so.

I would be in favor of this IF you are willing to sign a waiver making you solely responsible for any negative outcomes.

[roamer_1]

If that is the case then, why do we get the worst deal for the exact same product made by the exact same company though we are the largest volume consumer? What is the regulation that requires that? That's the standard pricing model turned on it's head. Why should we continue to operate like that?

Foremost because that product is protected by the US patent office preventing competition. Beyond that, inspection, regulation, and authentication protocols insisted upon by the FDA. Beyond that, horrendous insurance and health costs allowing a premium. beyond that, a very weak and inflated dollar. And finally, demand. Knock out all that crap except demand and you'll be paying pennies on the dollar

It's self evident and a recognized problem for years. Other country's socialized health care limits the price by fiat, we make up the difference. While I'm not a fan of Medicaid and Medicare, the fact is that they exist and they allow this to go on, and it costs the taxpayer trillions too much.

It is neither self evident nor recognized. And Medicaid/Medicare is an entirely different issue.

We're comparing on a same product basis. The cost of the product is already baked into the cake, there is no reason that when it goes out all over the world that somehow we must pay 10X or more of some other country, there is nowhere in the cost structure of that distribution chain that can justify us being singled out.

Then allow purchasing from 'over there'. Open our market to competition and let the market fix it. Don't let the government decide. The government is the very worst decider. You are saddling Big Pharma with the government as a silent partner, and they will both take a rake. That cannot be cheaper.

Generic meds may alleviate some of that problem, but we are still going to pay the bulk of the cost. Other govts are price fixing those as well.

Nonsense. Price fixing will cause shortage - Just like it does in Europe and Canada.

I'm all for letting foreign generics in if they can meet quality standards. The problem is many foreign companies and govts take short cuts.

Well there you go again. The quality is a value. That is saddling Big Pharma with the FDA - A BIG reason why Mexican Elequis costs way less. You can't have it both ways.

[Right_in_Virginia]

Why can't you go online and buy your Elequis (for instance) from Costa Rica (for instance)? It is about an eighth of the price down there... Made in Mexico...

This  . is why the "conservative" political philosophy is dying on the vine and "conservative" politicians are toxic --- Once outside the womb, the vast majority of "conservatives" have no connection with humanity.

[roamer_1]

This  . is why the "conservative" political philosophy is dying on the vine and "conservative" politicians are toxic --- Once outside the womb, the vast majority of "conservatives" have no connection with humanity.

It is a valid question. Big Pharma is not stopping you. I know from personal experience.

If you could buy from Mexico or from Costa Rica as a matter of course then Elequis would cost $30/mo instead of $500/mo. True story.

Until all the demand went down there and drove the prices up... But then you could buy from Singapore or South Korea or (gasp) China

[LMAO]

It is a valid question. Big Pharma is not stopping you. I know from personal experience.

If you could buy from Mexico or from Costa Rica as a matter of course then Elequis would cost $30/mo instead of $500/mo. True story.

Until all the demand went down there and drove the prices up... But then you could buy from Singapore or South Korea or (gasp) China

My mother and father-in-law used to winter in Texas and they would go over the border to get prescription glasses and even some dental work done in Mexico and they’re still alive in their mid 80’s

You do have to be careful when you get prescription drugs from Mexico, though. Same with what doctor you go to.

[Free Vulcan]

Foremost because that product is protected by the US patent office preventing competition. Beyond that, inspection, regulation, and authentication protocols insisted upon by the FDA. Beyond that, horrendous insurance and health costs allowing a premium. beyond that, a very weak and inflated dollar. And finally, demand. Knock out all that crap except demand and you'll be paying pennies on the dollar

Again, if I make 100M doses of Drug X at a total top to bottom cost of $10B, that cost is accounted for an price set before it leaves the factory. How then with he same cost structure are we paying so much more than say Germany? The only factors after that are volume pricing and shipping, neither of which explain why the US is paying so much more.

It is neither self evident nor recognized. And Medicaid/Medicare is an entirely different issue.

You've already alluded to it in other posts. Given Drug X made at the same country of origin it's still cheaper there than here. Insurance, lawyers, and regs don't explain that, as does why Medicare/Medicaid pays that ridiculous price.

Then allow purchasing from 'over there'. Open our market to competition and let the market fix it. Don't let the government decide. The government is the very worst decider. You are saddling Big Pharma with the government as a silent partner, and they will both take a rake. That cannot be cheaper.

Nonsense. Price fixing will cause shortage - Just like it does in Europe and Canada.

Foreign govts won't allow it because the cost is either fixed or subsidized. Businesses do this all the time, use their volume to demand a lower price if the vendor doesn't give it already. Are they price fixing? I don't see why the Govt shouldn't be allowed to at least get the same price as some other country who uses 10X as less of the product.

Well there you go again. The quality is a value. That is saddling Big Pharma with the FDA - A BIG reason why Mexican Elequis costs way less. You can't have it both ways.

But we're not talking about competition between different products, we're talking about he same product being charged at vastly different rates between countries. There is no justification for it, unless on a volume basis, for usually which we are the largest.

[bilo]

I'm not sure how you consider it to be socializing when all we're asking is to be treated like every other country.

The fact is we pay the gap between what they pay and what the manufacturer desires. It's a tax and it busts the budget, and by accepting it we give them tacit approval for their socialized health care..

We have the right as the largest consumer to seek the lowest price. There is no fixing prices because the price will float as the company requests a price to make a profit. All that is being asked is that everyone pays at the same rate.

This seems to be a radical concept to some.

Maybe it's because Pres. Trump's history before becoming POTUS was as a businessman. He negotiated everything. He's doing the same now and he knows as the largest customer he's an idiot if he doesn't demand a good price.

We can argue about price controls and socialized medicine, but the reality is the system that exists now is not going away. The Pubs sold us out when they didn't end obamacare when they had the chance and we elected them to do so. Now we have a substantial number of lower income working people on medicaid and obamacare. We are not going to see the day where everyone buys their own policy from a private insurer and gets drugs through their private insurer. If Pres. Trump doesn't take charge on drug pricing the costs to Medicare, Medicaid and Obamacare will continue to spiral out of control.

[roamer_1]

Again, if I make 100M doses of Drug X at a total top to bottom cost of $10B, that cost is accounted for an price set before it leaves the factory. How then with he same cost structure are we paying so much more than say Germany? The only factors after that are volume pricing and shipping, neither of which explain why the US is paying so much more.

In fact, they are probably forced to compete in those other countries, where the US patent may not apply. That is certainly the case with the Elequis we obtained from Peru and Costa Rica. I would question if it was made by Bristol-Meyer Squibb. It was still a little, pink, ovaline pill, but it was obviously rougher made. It wasn't polished and the stamp on it was different.

In the end, for the savings, we were happy to use whatever that was. And it worked as advertised.

You've already alluded to it in other posts. Given Drug X made at the same country of origin it's still cheaper there than here. Insurance, lawyers, and regs don't explain that, as does why Medicare/Medicaid pays that ridiculous price.

Yes it does explain it, although as I defined it, I think that the US patents preventing competition is the number one reason, and us regs in second.

And necessarily so. And as I have pointed out already, those pills are under pressure from competition elsewhere, where the US patent offers no protection... which always drives the price downward, big-time. What do you think would happen to our pharma trade if cheap Chinese knockoffs were allowed like in the rest of the economy?

Foreign govts won't allow it because the cost is either fixed or subsidized. Businesses do this all the time, use their volume to demand a lower price if the vendor doesn't give it already. Are they price fixing? I don't see why the Govt shouldn't be allowed to at least get the same price as some other country who uses 10X as less of the product.

So in other words, because other countries have socialized medicine and price controls, we should too.

But we're not talking about competition between different products, we're talking about he same product being charged at vastly different rates between countries. There is no justification for it, unless on a volume basis, for usually which we are the largest.

But yes we ARE talking about other products. If Bristol Meyer has to compete against cheap knockoffs in those other countries, that drives the price down. That's called competition, and that is how it works.

The Conservative threat toward over-charging companies would be to loosen patent protections, not initiate price controls. If you can't see the difference in that, I am sorry for you. Because you are about to meet a big lesson. One that has been repeated a thousand times through history. But I guess, here we go again.

By the time y'all figger it out, I hope there's a chance at salvaging liberty.

[bilo]

I believe Rand Paul would’ve been an excellent Presidential candidate. There’s just no chance he would’ve gotten the nomination in today’s GOP

I think Rand Paul is a good person, but his stubborn idealism is the prescription for failure.

He insisted that the waste that DOGE found should be voted on in recission by both Houses in order for it to be cut. In reality when the first bill was ready to be voted on it was quietly pulled because Congress didn't have enough votes.

He insisted that Tariffs shouldn't be imposed without congressional approval and now we are seeing all kinds of new trade agreements being negotiated that will be better for America and commitments to onshore manufacturing.

I agree that large groups should be formed in the private sector, but that wouldn't change how Medicare, Medicaid and Obamacare are impacted by drug prices.

[bilo]

The courts will probably say no to this first

You're probably right and the courts will further diminish their credibility with the public.

[roamer_1]

We are not going to see the day where everyone buys their own policy from a private insurer and gets drugs through their private insurer.

There's the main problem, right there... Insurance is just assumed. That's a deep and wide barrier between actual costs and actuarial costs... A whole level of profit taking that has inserted itself into the mix. Look at the profit they are taking and then tell me why medical costs are so expensive.

Does big Pharma have its snout in the trough? Sure they do. So does insurance. And now a nanny government... All of em get their cut right off the top, for doing damn little to nothing.

And then wonder why it costs so much. And then figger that more government must be the answer. *SMH* 

[roamer_1]

I believe Rand Paul would’ve been an excellent Presidential candidate. There’s just no chance he would’ve gotten the nomination in today’s GOP

There are very few I would trust enough to vote for out of hand. Rand Paul is one of em. He has my vote, anytime. 

[Fishrrman]

Why many in Congress are so unhappy with Mr. Trump's new orders that will lower the cost of prescription drugs...
(shamelessly copied and saved from that other forum, thanks for the poster o'er there who put this up):

REPORT: List of U.S. Senators with Pharmaceutical Contributions (1990-2024):

1. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI): $600,000

2. John Barrasso (R-WY): $500,000

3. Michael Bennet (D-CO): $1,500,000

4. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN): $600,000

5. Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-DE): $320,793

6. John Boozman (R-AR): $200,000

7. Mike Braun (R-IN): $150,000

8. Katie Britt (R-AL): $50,000

9. Ted Budd (R-NC): $100,000

10. Laphonza Butler (D-CA): $50,000

11. Maria Cantwell (D-WA): $200,000

12. Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV): $300,000

13. Ben Cardin (D-MD): $1,200,000

14. Tom Carper (D-DE): $800,000

15. Bob Casey (D-PA): $1,790,780

16. Bill Cassidy (R-LA): $600,000

17. Susan Collins (R-ME): $700,000

18. Chris Coons (D-DE): $400,000

19. John Cornyn (R-TX): $900,000

20. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV): $421,000

21. Kevin Cramer (R-ND): $150,000

22. Mike Crapo (R-ID): $600,000

23. Ted Cruz (R-TX): $300,000

24. John Curtis (R-UT): $450,000

25. Steve Daines (R-MT): $200,000

26. Tammy Duckworth (D-IL): $150,000

27. Dick Durbin (D-IL): $1,000,000

28. Joni Ernst (R-IA): $150,000

29. Deb Fischer (R-NE): $200,000

30. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ): $244,135

31. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY): $800,000

32. Lindsey Graham (R-SC): $500,000

33. Chuck Grassley (R-IA): $400,000

34. Bill Hagerty (R-TN): $100,000

35. Maggie Hassan (D-NH): $90,000

36. Josh Hawley (R-MO): $100,000

37. Martin Heinrich (D-NM): $300,000

38. George Helmy (D-NJ): $10,000

39. John Hickenlooper (D-CO): $200,000

40. Mazie Hirono (D-HI): $200,000

41. John Hoeven (R-ND): $250,000

42. Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS): $100,000

43. Jim Justice (R-WV): $50,000

44. Ron Johnson (R-WI): $300,000

45. Tim Kaine (D-VA): $600,000

46. Mark Kelly (D-AZ): $100,000

47. John Kennedy (R-LA): $200,000

48. Andy Kim (D-NJ): $106,778

49. Angus King (I-ME): $150,000

50. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN): $700,000

51. James Lankford (R-OK): $150,000

52. Mike Lee (R-UT): $100,000

53. Ben Ray Luján (D-NM): $200,000

54. Cynthia Lummis (R-WY): $50,000

55. Joe Manchin (I-WV): $600,000

56. Ed Markey (D-MA): $400,000

57. Mitch McConnell (R-KY): $2,020,462

58. Bob Menendez (D-NJ): $1,474,575

59. Jeff Merkley (D-OR): $200,000

60. Jerry Moran (R-KS): $300,000

61. Markwayne Mullin (R-OK): $100,000

62. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK): $400,000

63. Chris Murphy (D-CT): $300,000

64. Patty Murray (D-WA): $1,000,000

65. Rand Paul (R-KY): $100,000

66. Gary Peters (D-MI): $400,000

67. Jack Reed (D-RI): $300,000

68. Pete Ricketts (R-NE): $100,000

69. Jim Risch (R-ID): $150,000

70. Mitt Romney (R-UT): $2,700,392

71. Jacky Rosen (D-NV): $300,000

72. Mike Rounds (R-SD): $150,000

73. Bernie Sanders (I-VT): $1,918,361

74. Brian Schatz (D-HI): $200,000

75. Adam Schiff (D-CA): $196,635

76. Chuck Schumer (D-NY): $1,500,000

77. Eric Schmitt (R-MO): $50,000

78. Rick Scott (R-FL): $200,000

79. Tim Scott (R-SC): $596,000

80. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH): $400,000

81. Kyrsten Sinema (I-AZ): $556,000

82. Tina Smith (D-MN): $200,000

83. Elissa Slotkin (D-MI): $187,096

84. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI): $800,000

85. Dan Sullivan (R-AK): $150,000

86. Jon Tester (D-MT): $1,000,000

87. John Thune (R-SD): $400,000

88. Thom Tillis (R-NC): $300,000

89. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL):$50,000

90. JD Vance (R-OH): $50,000

91. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD): $300,000

92. Mark Warner (D-VA): $600,000

93. Raphael Warnock (D-GA): $50,000

94. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA): $822,573

95. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI): $300,000

96. Roger Wicker (R-MS): $300,000

97. Ron Wyden (D-OR): $1,500,000

98. Todd Young (R-IN): $300,000

https://x.com/realTrentLeisy/status/1921961536895230152

[LMAO]

This week, President Donald Trump issued an order he says will bring down Americans' prescription drug prices. The order will likely have little effect, but it's a perfect example of the government price controls that Trump and members of his administration once compared to socialism and fascism

https://reason.com/2025/05/13/trump-called-price-controls-communist-now-hes-ordering-them-for-prescription-drugs/

[roamer_1]

This week, President Donald Trump issued an order he says will bring down Americans' prescription drug prices. The order will likely have little effect, but it's a perfect example of the government price controls that Trump and members of his administration once compared to socialism and fascism

https://reason.com/2025/05/13/trump-called-price-controls-communist-now-hes-ordering-them-for-prescription-drugs/

So it ain't 67 level chess. It's a done deal. Some here think it's good.
This is insanity.

[Hoodat]

Why many in Congress are so unhappy with Mr. Trump's new orders that will lower the cost of prescription drugs...
(shamelessly copied and saved from that other forum, thanks for the poster o'er there who put this up):

REPORT: List of U.S. Senators with Pharmaceutical Contributions (1990-2024):

1. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI): $600,000

2. John Barrasso (R-WY): $500,000

3. Michael Bennet (D-CO): $1,500,000

4. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN): $600,000

5. Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-DE): $320,793  .  .  .

This is why the 17th Amendment needs to be repealed.

[Right_in_Virginia]

We have the right as the largest consumer to seek the lowest price. There is no fixing prices because the price will float as the company requests a price to make a profit. All that is being asked is that everyone pays at the same rate.

 

[Hoodat]

We have the right as the largest consumer to seek the lowest price. There is no fixing prices because the price will float as the company requests a price to make a profit. All that is being asked is that everyone pays at the same rate.

OK, let's try again.  Here is what we currently have - less than a dozen really big consumers (the Federal Government, Blue Cross, United Cigna, etc.)  Each of these consumers is require by law to purchase a list of pharmaceutical goods from Big Pharma.  They can't say "no".  They have to buy it at whatever price they can negotiate.  And Big Pharma has them over a barrel, again because they are mandated to purchase those drugs on behalf of their customers (who do not directly pay for the drugs).

And here's what we should have - 350 million customers who are not mandated to buy a damn thing.  Whatever price Big Pharma offers, they can take it or leave it.  If they don't want to pay that price for that drug, then they can find a substitute.  This negotiation gets repeated 350 million times to the point that Big Pharma prices their product (to maximize their profit in a fully competitive market) at a point well below what the big consumers in scenario 1 pay.

I'll say it again.  If you want the lowest price, then GET THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT THE HELL OUT OF THE HEALTHCARE MARKET!  Because this argument of the federal government negotiating a better price is the EXACT SAME ARGUMENT the Democrats gave us for Obamacare.  Well guess what?  The Democrats got their way.  And here we are 15 years later bitching about high pharmaceutical costs while the very same Big Pharma who literally wrote the Obamacare bill enjoys record profits.

[Right_in_Virginia]

Rand Paul: Drug Price Controls Create Shortages, Like They Do in Europe
Ian Hanchett 13 May 2025

On Monday’s broadcast of the Fox News Channel’s “Jesse Watters Primetime,” Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) argued that imposing government price controls on prescription drugs will lead to shortages and this is what happens in Europe.

Paul said,  “The thing is, is if you want prices to be low and you say the government should just make them fair or low, Venezuela’s got a great example of this, and there they’ve had price controls on everything. But you know what? They don’t have anything. Price controls lead to shortages.

Rand has some admirable qualities, but controlling his Pavlovian knee jerks is not one of them.  Rand needs to think and digest a proposal before running to the cameras or his legacy, ironically, will be a guardian of the failed status quo.

Trump is not suggesting or proposing the government set the cost of prescription drugs ---- price remains the purview of the drug companies.

Trump is removing the bullseye from the wallets of American customers by making sure his citizens are no longer responsible for funding pharmaceutical profits above and beyond the responsibility of any other country.

IOW:  Stop ripping off the United States.   And, this is a good thing, Rand.

[roamer_1]

I'll say it again.  If you want the lowest price, then GET THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT THE HELL OUT OF THE HEALTHCARE MARKET!  Because this argument of the federal government negotiating a better price is the EXACT SAME ARGUMENT the Democrats gave us for Obamacare.  Well guess what?  The Democrats got their way.  And here we are 15 years later bitching about high pharmaceutical costs while the very same Big Pharma who literally wrote the Obamacare bill enjoys record profits.

Exactly right. Uncle Nanny ain't gonna fix it. Uncle Nanny is gonna make it worse.

[roamer_1]

Rand has some admirable qualities, but controlling his Pavlovian knee jerks is not one of them.  Rand needs to think and digest a proposal before running to the cameras or his legacy, ironically, will be the guardian of the failed status quo.

Trump is not suggesting or proposing the government set the cost of prescription drugs ---- price remains the purview of the drug companies.

Trump is removing the bullseye from the wallets of the American customers by making sure his citizens are not responsible for funding pharmaceutical profits above and beyond the responsibility of any other country.

IOW:  Stop ripping off the United States.   And, this is a good thing, Rand.

No, it's not. It's the devil in a short black dress.

[bilo]

There's the main problem, right there... Insurance is just assumed. That's a deep and wide barrier between actual costs and actuarial costs... A whole level of profit taking that has inserted itself into the mix. Look at the profit they are taking and then tell me why medical costs are so expensive.

Does big Pharma have its snout in the trough? Sure they do. So does insurance. And now a nanny government... All of em get their cut right off the top, for doing damn little to nothing.

And then wonder why it costs so much. And then figger that more government must be the answer. *SMH* 

This is what I call yelling at the clouds. All the complaining about the rain doesn't stop the rain.

At least Pres. Trump is using what power he has to do something.

[Hoodat]

Rand has some admirable qualities, but controlling his Pavlovian knee jerks is not one of them.  Rand needs to think and digest a proposal  .  .  .

The proposal which you endorse is the EXACT SAME PROPOSAL Obama gave us in 2010.  You are literally giving us the same argument that Democrats gave us then.

[Hoodat]

At least Pres. Trump is using what power he has to do something.

The best use of President Trump's power is to repeal Obamacare and get the Federal Government the hell out of the healthcare industry.  Instead, he wants to be Obama 2.0.

[Weird Tolkienish Figure]

The best use of President Trump's power is to repeal Obamacare and get the Federal Government the hell out of the healthcare industry.  Instead, he wants to be Obama 2.0.

Reimportation was really the thing to do.

[jafo2010]

Don't hold your breath for this EO affecting much.  The pharma companies completely own Congress.  Completely!!!

Trump talked about doing this in the first term, and he did a big fat nothing.  This EO will still keep us in the big fat nothing category.

Again, when the white powder was circulating in Washington around the year 2000, Cipro was the primary anti biotic used to fight anthrax.  In the USA then, it was $120-200 per prescription.  In Russia, the same prescription was $1.

Yes, the people of the USA are funding pharma for the entire world, including our enemies.  And nothing Trump will do is going to change it.  Nothing!!!

[roamer_1]

This is what I call yelling at the clouds. All the complaining about the rain doesn't stop the rain.

At least Pres. Trump is using what power he has to do something.

Yeah... Do something - Even if it's WRONG.

[Timber Rattler]

Rand has some admirable qualities, but controlling his Pavlovian knee jerks is not one of them.  Rand needs to think and digest a proposal before running to the cameras or his legacy, ironically, will be a guardian of the failed status quo.

Oh, like his medical degree from Duke University, medical license since 1993, and successful ophthalmologic surgical practice, which is still ongoing when Congress is not in session?

So you know more about the healthcare and insurance industries/rackets than he does?

 

[Smokin Joe]

@Right_in_Virginia  used the perfect word to describe them:  "Tiresome"

And that was being kind.

It dawns on me that if 'Big Pharma' has reduced revenues, maybe they will quit advertising so much on the cable/satellite channels, and the likes of those mongers of misinformation will have to find other sponsors in spite of their crappy ratings...$over 100 Billion in profits over useless shots hawked on nooze channels while they were pimping panic, much of it coming from taxpayers' pockets.

Who says crime doesn't pay?

[Smokin Joe]

The best use of President Trump's power is to repeal Obamacare and get the Federal Government the hell out of the healthcare industry.  Instead, he wants to be Obama 2.0.

Any time the Congress wants to get off its collective ass and put the bill nuking Obamacare on his desk, he'd sign it. He would have done it his first term. But Congress (especially the GOP) whizzed away its majority then, too, just like it is running out the midterm clock now.

[bigheadfred]

The needs of the one outweigh the needs of the many.

"If Medicare, Medicaid, and all government subsidies (ACA, ESI tax exclusions, VHA, TRICARE, etc.) were eliminated, approximately 157.5–159.5 million people could lose healthcare coverage. "

[catfish1957]

In the age of Trump, many so called conservatives are now advocating for big government solutions to problems caused by that same big government

I guess DOGE was a figment of our imagination. That is sooooooooo. "Big Government" huh?  Dismantling Dept of Ed?  Geez.

People really need to think before they post.

[roamer_1]

I guess DOGE was a figment of our imagination. That is sooooooooo. "Big Government" huh?  Dismantling Dept of Ed?  Geez.

People really need to think before they post.

Yes, it is. Dept of Ed is not gone. Watch and see.

[catfish1957]

Yes, it is. Dept of Ed is not gone. Watch and see.

Maybe, but just how is that Trump's fault?

[roamer_1]

Maybe, but just how is that Trump's fault?

It's not. The pointless flailing and then braggin on it like it's true is.

[mystery-ak]

https://twitter.com/bennyjohnson/status/1922693508013441152