How House Democrats are explaining gridlock on lowering drug costs
Last week, I made the 550-mile journey from STAT’s Washington Bureau to a small office park in Tamworth, N.H. to attend a prescription drug affordability town hall with newly elected Rep. Chris Pappas. Pappas wanted to talk about Democrats’ big ideas for lowering prescription drug costs, but his constituents were far less idealistic: They only wanted to know what could actually get done in Washington.
The room of roughly 40 constituents, most of whom were eligible for Medicare, was by no means hostile to Pappas, the 39-year old lifelong Granite Stater who got elected to Washington in November. But there was plenty of frustration — and even some tears — about the high cost of prescription drugs and the inaction on Capitol Hill.
As one constituent put it: “Nothing changes ... It’s a joke.”
Comments like that underscore a growing issue for House Democrats, particularly those who won close races and are likely to face hard reelection fights: how to spin gridlock on seemingly commonsense issues, like lowering the cost of prescription drugs, as progress, I write in my dispatch for STAT. Read more.
The room of roughly 40 constituents, most of whom were eligible for Medicare, was by no means hostile to Pappas, the 39-year old lifelong Granite Stater who got elected to Washington in November. But there was plenty of frustration — and even some tears — about the high cost of prescription drugs and the inaction on Capitol Hill.
As one constituent put it: “Nothing changes ... It’s a joke.”
Comments like that underscore a growing issue for House Democrats, particularly those who won close races and are likely to face hard reelection fights: how to spin gridlock on seemingly commonsense issues, like lowering the cost of prescription drugs, as progress, I write in my dispatch for STAT. Read more.
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