Voters want lower drug prices. GOP lawmakers should listen

Election Day is almost here, and early voting is already underway in several states. The clock is ticking for candidates searching for that last, salient issue to move voters. As Republicans fight to hold the House, a clear opportunity is sitting right in front of them: taking a meaningful stance on lowering prescription drug prices.Right now, Americans pay nearly three times more for prescription drugs than patients in any other developed nation. Not because our drugs are any better, but because Washington has let it go on for far too long. That reality has been fueling frustration and pain at kitchen tables across the country. But heading into this election, there is a clear solution on the table. Recommended Stories Recent polling from Fabrizio, Lee & Associates — the research firm behind President Donald Trump’s presidential campaigns — reveals that in battleground districts where control of the House will be decided, 90% of all likely voters agree that prescription drug pricing reform is a bipartisan issue both parties must prioritize, and 91% support a bipartisan approach to holding Big Pharma accountable. Most critically for candidates making their closing arguments, 70% of all voters say a candidate’s stance on drug pricing matters to their vote this November. What makes these numbers even more striking is that voters are rallying behind an existing solution that comes straight from the White House: the most-favored-nation drug pricing policy. If enacted into law, MFN drug pricing would require pharmaceutical companies to charge people no more than they charge patients in other comparable countries. It is the kind of commonsense principle that is difficult to argue against, and the numbers reflect exactly that.More than 4 in 5 voters say they support their member of Congress voting for MFN drug pricing legislation, including 80% of Republicans, 84% of independents, and 87% of Democrats. This is a rare issue that cuts across party lines, and it has the power to move large numbers of people within each group.PINK RIBBONS TO PRECISION MEDICINE: HOW TRUMP’S FDA IS STEPPING UP AGAINST BREAST CANCERExecutive agreements have moved drug pricing reform forward, but only legislation can make those gains last. Trump deserves credit for negotiating more than two dozen MFN agreements with drug manufacturers — work that has built real momentum. But agreements are not law, and a future administration could unwind them entirely. Therefore, it’s important to codify MFN drug pricing policy into law, which will result in meaningful cost savings for every U.S. patient.Voters have made their voices clear — in fact, they couldn’t be clearer about who they blame for high drug prices, what they want (lower drug prices), and the policy solutions they support to get there. GOP candidates who pass up this moment will own that decision, and their constituents will remember it. Lawmakers should make clear they support MFN drug pricing, pass this legislation during the lame duck session or in the new Congress, and prove that Washington can deliver when the country is watching and demanding action.J.D. Hayworth is a former six-term U.S. Congressman from Arizona and spokesman for the Pharmaceutical Reform Alliance.