美国国家公共电台 NPR--Efforts are underway to reduce the high costs of prescription drugs for U.S. patients

Efforts are underway to reduce the high costs of prescription¹ drugs for U.S. patients

Transcript²

In an effort to reduce the high price of prescription drugs, some states and companies are taking their own measures. A not-for-profit company says it aims to introduce low-cost insulin by 2024.

LEILA FADEL, HOST:

Americans pay way more than people in other countries for prescription drugs, and several provisions in the Inflation Reduction Act that the Senate passed late yesterday aim to address this problem. NPR's Allison Aubrey joins us now. Good morning, Allison.

ALLISON AUBREY, BYLINE³: Good morning, Leila.

FADEL: So Allison, this is a real problem for so many families, and a lot of people struggle to afford their medicine.

AUBREY: Absolutely. There's probably no better example than the diabetes⁴ medicine insulin. The cost of leading brands has actually tripled over the past decade. And what really upsets the folks I talked to is that insulin prices are about four times higher here in the U.S. compared to other countries.

Here's Bob Parant. He's turning 70 this year. He lives in Long Island, N.Y. He has type 1 diabetes. He pays about $5,000 out of pocket each year for his diabetes medicines. This is on top of the thousands he pays for his heart medication.

BOB PARANT: Absolutely, it's a financial hardship. It's really a disgrace what we have to pay for the cost of drugs to stay alive. If you don't have insulin, you die.

AUBREY: He says he'd like to take trips to visit his grandkids more often, not worry about things like household repairs or the grocery bill. He worries he won't be able to pay for his medicines if the prices keep going up.

FADEL: And, of course, he's not alone.

AUBREY: That's right. Twenty-five percent of patients with diabetes have reported using less insulin than prescribed because they just can't afford it. This is millions of people potentially skimping⁵ on insulin, which can be dangerous.

FADEL: So what provisions in this just-passed Senate bill would help lower the cost of prescription drugs?

AUBREY: Well, the bill includes a cap on out-of-pocket expenses - a $2,000 cap. Now, this is only for people in Medicare. So seniors would not have to pay more than $2,000 a year total for their prescription drugs. And Bob Parant says this will be very helpful.

PARANT: The proposal to limit out-of-pocket expenses that's on the table right now would absolutely make a huge difference in my life.

AUBREY: And the bill also includes a measure that would empower the federal health secretary to negotiate Medicare drug prices for some of the most expensive drugs. It's something that has been talked about for years as a way to give the federal government more leverage⁶ to bring down costs.

FADEL: So seniors may get some financial relief, but what about everybody else? What other reforms are being considered here?

AUBREY: Well, there was a provision aimed at capping patients' out-of-pocket costs for insulin to $35 a month for people with private insurance, but this was ruled out by the Senate parliamentarian, and this is something that many diabetes patients tell me would be really helpful. I spoke⁷ to a school teacher in Indiana, Kathy Sego. She's had a health insurance plan with a very high deductible - has paid up to $8,000 a year out of pocket for medicines for her son. She says she's very frustrated⁸ with the pharmaceutical⁹ companies because she says, as their profits have soared, she's had to decide between paying for her son's insulin or paying the utility bill.

FADEL: Wow.

AUBREY: At one point, she actually had her electricity cut off.

KATHY SEGO: I'm all for people making money. I get it. And I think people should make money. But should you make so much money that, you know, you're living the high life while people are having their electricity turned off - that their bodies are suffering because you want a profit? Of course it makes me angry.

AUBREY: You can just really hear it there in her voice.

FADEL: Yeah.

AUBREY: And she says she's angry the pharmaceutical industry spends millions of dollars to lobby against these reforms.

FADEL: I mean, that's really hard to listen to - a mom having to choose between her son's health and electricity. What exactly is the pharmaceutical industry lobbying against here?

AUBREY: The pharmaceutical industry opposes Medicare negotiation¹⁰. I spoke to PhRMA. That's the industry's trade association. They say they agree Americans are paying too much for medicines, but they argue this is not the way to fix it. They say government negotiation is, quote, "nothing short of government price setting" and it would stifle¹¹ innovation - lead to fewer new medicines coming to market. But many economists¹² and policymakers disagree. I mean, the Congressional Budget Office estimates the effect would be very modest. And it's worth noting most big drug companies spend more on advertising¹³ and marketing¹⁴ than they do on research and development. Bob Parant says this makes him angry.

PARANT: They are making so much money. It is ridiculous that they can't pass along some of these savings¹⁵ and negotiate Medicare prices.

AUBREY: He says he's particularly upset by the ads airing across the country now that claim the Senate bill would siphon billions of dollars away from Medicare. He says the misleading implication is that seniors would have their benefits cut.

PARANT: These campaigns that I've been seeing are scare tactics and lies to change the opinions of some of the seniors.

FADEL: So who is behind these ads?

AUBREY: The ads are part of a seven-figure campaign by a group that calls itself Commitment to Seniors. Their ads claim the Senate bill would, quote, "siphon nearly $300 billion out of Medicare," which is very misleading. Michael Beckel, who tracks dark money for a group called Issue One, says this is a common tactic¹⁶.

MICHAEL BECKEL: When people see an ad on TV from a group called Commitment to Seniors, that sounds pretty innocuous. They might not know who's funding it, and it's very hard to tell from the public record who funds a group like that.

AUBREY: It turns out Commitment to Seniors is a project of another group, American Commitment, that has received more than a million dollars from PhRMA in the past years. Bottom line - their message is misleading. Rather than siphoning money from Medicare, the Congressional Budget Office projects the reforms would actually save taxpayers¹⁷ money by lowering drug prices. And most importantly, seniors' benefits would not be cut.

FADEL: NPR's Allison Aubrey. Thanks so much.

AUBREY: Thank you, Leila.

FADEL: The bill now moves on to the House, where it's expected to pass this week.

1 prescription   

n.处方，开药；指示，规定

参考例句：

• The physician made a prescription against sea- sickness for him.医生给他开了个治晕船的药方。
• The drug is available on prescription only.这种药只能凭处方购买。

2 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

3 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

4 diabetes   

n.糖尿病

参考例句：

• In case of diabetes, physicians advise against the use of sugar.对于糖尿病患者，医生告诫他们不要吃糖。
• Diabetes is caused by a fault in the insulin production of the body.糖尿病是由体內胰岛素分泌失调引起的。

5 skimping   

v.少用( skimp的现在分词 )；少给；克扣；节省

参考例句：

• Nearly a third of workers are skimping on work to meet personal commitments. 几乎有三分之一的员工仅仅是为了达到自己许下的承诺因而在工作上马虎了事。 来自互联网

6 leverage   

n.力量，影响；杠杆作用，杠杆的力量

参考例句：

• We'll have to use leverage to move this huge rock.我们不得不借助杠杆之力来移动这块巨石。
• He failed in the project because he could gain no leverage. 因为他没有影响力，他的计划失败了。

7 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

8 frustrated   

adj.挫败的，失意的，泄气的v.使不成功( frustrate的过去式和过去分词 )；挫败；使受挫折；令人沮丧

参考例句：

• It's very easy to get frustrated in this job. 这个工作很容易令人懊恼。
• The bad weather frustrated all our hopes of going out. 恶劣的天气破坏了我们出行的愿望。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 pharmaceutical   

adj.药学的，药物的；药用的，药剂师的

参考例句：

• She has donated money to establish a pharmaceutical laboratory.她捐款成立了一个药剂实验室。
• We are engaged in a legal tussle with a large pharmaceutical company.我们正同一家大制药公司闹法律纠纷。

10 negotiation   

n.谈判，协商

参考例句：

• They closed the deal in sugar after a week of negotiation.经过一星期的谈判，他们的食糖生意成交了。
• The negotiation dragged on until July.谈判一直拖到7月份。

11 stifle   

vt.使窒息；闷死；扼杀；抑止，阻止

参考例句：

• She tried hard to stifle her laughter.她强忍住笑。
• It was an uninteresting conversation and I had to stifle a yawn.那是一次枯燥无味的交谈，我不得不强忍住自己的呵欠。

12 economists   

n.经济学家，经济专家( economist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The sudden rise in share prices has confounded economists. 股价的突然上涨使经济学家大惑不解。
• Foreign bankers and economists cautiously welcomed the minister's initiative. 外国银行家和经济学家对部长的倡议反应谨慎。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 advertising   

n.广告业；广告活动 a.广告的；广告业务的

参考例句：

• Can you give me any advice on getting into advertising? 你能指点我如何涉足广告业吗?
• The advertising campaign is aimed primarily at young people. 这个广告宣传运动主要是针对年轻人的。

14 marketing   

n.行销，在市场的买卖，买东西

参考例句：

• They are developing marketing network.他们正在发展销售网络。
• He often goes marketing.他经常去市场做生意。

15 savings   

n.存款，储蓄

参考例句：

• I can't afford the vacation,for it would eat up my savings.我度不起假，那样会把我的积蓄用光的。
• By this time he had used up all his savings.到这时，他的存款已全部用完。

16 tactic   

n.战略，策略；adj.战术的，有策略的

参考例句：

• Reducing prices is a common sales tactic.降价是常用的销售策略。
• She had often used the tactic of threatening to resign.她惯用以辞职相威胁的手法。

17 taxpayers   

纳税人，纳税的机构( taxpayer的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Finance for education comes from taxpayers. 教育经费来自纳税人。
• She was declaiming against the waste of the taxpayers' money. 她慷慨陈词猛烈抨击对纳税人金钱的浪费。