Senate Democrats are hitting the ground running to investigate the broken drug pricing system that has left one in four Americans struggling to afford their medications. After passing historic legislation to drive down prices for patients and curb drug company greed, Senate HELP Committee Chair Bernie Sanders (D-VT) is leading an aggressive strategy to hold Big Pharma accountable for their price hikes.
Bloomberg: Pharma CEOs Are Among Likely Targets for Senate Democrats’ Subpoenas. “With long-time critic Bernie Sanders taking over the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, pharmaceutical companies will be under a microscope like no other. The progressive firebrand says he’s ready to order executives to appear and has recently taken particular aim at a ‘dysfunctional’ and ‘broken’ health-care system.” [Bloomberg, 1/23/23]
Axios: Drug Companies Brace for Chairman Bernie. “Sanders has signaled an early focus of the committee’s work will be drug prices, and manufacturers are bracing for some contentious hearings. ‘I have no doubt there will be tough hearings with people from industry being forced to testify, subpoenaed to testify, etc.,’ a pharmaceutical industry source said. ‘And I think that’s going to be a real challenge.’” [Axios, 1/30/23]