March 2020

Dear Friends,

Prescription drug companies are charging Americans prices that are three, four, or even ten times higher than what they charge for the same drugs in other countries. They also subject Americans to unjustified annual price hikes far above the rate of inflation. As a result, across the United States, seniors and families are struggling to afford the prescription drugs they need to stay healthy. Three in ten adults reported not taking their medicines as prescribed at some point in the past year because of the cost.

The soaring price of prescription drugs is crushing Americans at the pharmacy counter, driving up health insurance premiums, and creating unaffordable costs for taxpayers who finance Medicare and Medicaid.

It is time to put an end to the vicious price-gouging practices that are hurting health care consumers! Congress is stymied in its efforts to get any real legislation passed, but state legislatures are stepping up to take on the fight to reduce the costs of prescription drugs, and Illinois can lead the way!

Please consider supporting and joining in CCHCC’s community organizing and advocacy efforts to get sensible Rx pricing legislation in IL passed. The time to do this work is now! CCHCC will be working hard to educate and mobilize our community to advocate for legislation to benefit consumers. State representatives and senators will need to hear from their constituents so that Big Pharma doesn’t have the last word on prescription drug pricing.

Let your voice be heard! Join CCHCC for the upcoming Town Hall Meeting on Rx Drug Prices, with State Senators Scott Bennett and Andy Manar on Monday, March 9 at 5:30 p.m.
Illinois legislators have been working with consumer organizations, including CCHCC, to propose a broad package of legislation aimed at lowering prescription drug prices and eliminating predatory practices by the pharmaceutical, insurance, and pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) industries. Please join CCHCC at the upcoming Town Hall to share your concerns and find out what you can do at the grassroots level to help pass sensible state legislation. Here are the details:

WHAT: Town Hall Meeting on Rx Drug Prices
WHO: IL State Senators Scott Bennett and Andy Manar, and CCHCC
WHEN: Monday, March 9, 2020 at 5:30 p.m.
WHERE: Illinois Terminal Building – 4th Floor – 45 E. University Avenue, Champaign

Consumers need relief from the cost of unregulated, ever-increasing drug prices!
Here are the facts:
• One in four Illinois residents have difficulty affording their prescriptions;
• One in eight report that they or a family member have cut pills in half or skipped doses due to
high drug costs; and,
• Health plans attribute 22 percent of premium costs to prescription drugs

After early success, Illinois is working to pass more Rx pricing bills.
Last year, the Illinois State Legislature created a new committee to take on the challenge of prescription drug pricing. It is the Prescription Drug Affordability & Accessibility Committee. The Rx committee has already had some success with the passage of IL’s SB667, which will cap the price of insulin in Illinois. This bill was signed into law by Gov. Pritzker earlier this year.

HB3493 – Creation of a Prescription Drug Affordability Board (PDAB).
Now, building on the success of the insulin bill, advocates and legislators are working together to support passage of HB3493. HB3493 will create a Prescription Drug Affordability Board (PDAB) – an independent non-partisan board responsible for reviewing and limiting prescription drug prices. This board would: a) monitor drug companies that charge high prices; b) use state buying power to pressure drug companies to lower prices; and c) give Illinois residents a voice on Rx costs.

CCHCC is dedicated to working with our state legislators to help advance legislation that will benefit Illinois consumers.

Local consumers need help now – that’s why CCHCC established our Rx Fund.
Even as we work on legislative initiatives to reduce the costs of prescription drugs, we help local consumers on a daily basis to pay for their prescription drugs through our Rx Fund. Our Rx Fund is a fund that helps cover the costs of co-pays or the full costs of prescriptions for low-income consumers who could not otherwise afford to fill their prescriptions.

Please consider making a contribution to help support CCHCC’s work to make prescription drugs affordable for our community members. Our Rx Fund helps bridge the gap so that local consumers can get the prescriptions they need, and our community organizing and advocacy efforts will help support legislation to make the costs of prescriptions more transparent and affordable for everyone.

Thank you for your support!
We appreciate your financial support and your involvement in our advocacy efforts. Together, we are building a stronger, healthier community – together, we will win the fight to make prescriptions in Illinois more affordable!

Donate Now!

Sincerely,
Claudia Lennhoff
CCHCC Executive Director