July 2021

Supreme Court Ruling Represents Victory for Medicaid Expansion in Missouri, But Long Road Ahead Demonstrates Need for Federal Solution to Closing the Coverage Gap

Washington, DC — Yesterday, the Missouri Supreme Court unanimously ruled in favor of Medicaid expansion, reversing a lower court decision rejecting the program. In August 2020, voters in Missouri approved expansion, but Republicans in the state legislature refused to fund the program, leading to a months-long legal battle. In the meantime, at least 275,000 Missourians have been denied Medicaid coverage. In response, Protect Our Care Executive Director Brad Woodhouse issued the following statement: 

“It is simply outrageous that Republicans in Missouri ignored the will of the people and denied hundreds of thousands of Missouri families access to health coverage in the middle of a global pandemic. Research shows that Medicaid expansion increases access to care, bolsters the economy, and saves lives, but Republicans would rather play political games than improve the health and well being of their constituents. Every day this process plays out is another day 275,000 Missourians are denied access to coverage. What’s happened in Missouri makes clear we cannot trust Republican-led states to do the right thing, and we need a federal solution to ensure millions of people stuck in the coverage gap finally get the coverage they need.” 

***MEDIA ADVISORY FOR TODAY JULY 23, 2021 AT 10:00 AM CT // 11:00 AM ET***

TODAY: U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin, State Rep. Kristina Shelton, and Wisconsin Health Care Advocates to Discuss Senator Baldwin’s Medicaid Saves Lives Act

Medicaid Saves Live Act Would Extend Coverage To Millions Of Americans, Including Wisconsinites

WISCONSIN — On Friday, July 23 at 11:00 AM ET // 10:00 AM CT, U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) will discuss the Medicaid Saves Lives Act for a press conference featuring Wisconsin residents and State Rep. Kristina Shelton (Green Bay). Hosted by Protect Our Care and Citizen Action of Wisconsin, residents who have seen the cost of state failures to expand Medicaid firsthand will share their experiences.

The Medicaid Saves Lives Act was introduced last week by Senators Baldwin, Jon Ossoff (D-GA), and Reverend Raphael Warnock (D-GA) to create a federal program to extend coverage to millions of people in states like Wisconsin that have refused Medicaid expansion.

An estimated four million uninsured adults could gain coverage if the remaining holdout states adopted expansion. In Wisconsin, the Republican state legislature’s repeated refusal to expand Medicaid has left more than 91,000 Wisconsinites without access to quality, affordable, health coverage. The state has also missed out on $1.6 billion in federal funding. 

Despite robust incentives included in President Biden’s American Rescue Plan, twelve states — including Wisconsin, refuse to expand Medicaid, underscoring the need for a federal solution. The Medicaid Saves Live Act is that solution.

PRESS CALL

WHO:
U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI)
State Rep. Kristina Shelton
Lisa Schwetschenau, health care advocate
Peggy McDowell, health care advocate

WHAT: Virtual Press Conference to Discuss the Medicaid Saves Live Act

WHERE: Register for the Event Here

WHEN: Friday, July 23 at  10:00 AM CT // 11:00 AM ET

***MEDIA ADVISORY FOR FRIDAY, JULY 23 AT 1:00 PM ET // 12:00 PM CT***

PRESS CALL: U.S. Rep. Angie Craig, Small Business for America’s Future and Protect Our Care to Highlight Impact of High Drug Prices on Small Businesses

Call Will Convey Urgent Need To Stand Up To Big Pharma And Give Medicare the Power to Negotiate for Lower Drug Prices 

Washington, D.C. — On Friday, July 23 at 1:00 PM ET // 12:00 PM CT, U.S. Representative Angie Craig (D-MN-02), Kristi Martin, Senior Advisor for Small Business for America’s Future, and Candace Combs, owner of Combs Business Consulting and In-Symmetry Spa and Small Business for America’s Future Small Business Council Member, will join Protect Our Care for a virtual press conference to discuss how high drug prices are harming small businesses. The event comes after Protect Our Care released a report co-sponsored by Small Business for America’s Future as part of Week 7 of Lower Rx Summer. 

In June, Protect Our Care announced Lower Rx Summer as part of The Campaign to Reduce Drug Prices. Lower Rx Summer consists of themed weeks of action to illustrate the urgent need for legislation to lower drug prices principally by giving Medicare the power to negotiate with drug companies for lower prices for all Americans. 

In the coming months, President Biden and members of Congress have an unprecedented opportunity to finally take action to lower drug prices. In 2019, the House of Representatives passed the Lower Drug Costs Now Act (H.R. 3), historic legislation that would lower drug prices for all Americans. H.R. 3 would save patients over $150 billion and reduce the price of the costliest drugs by as much as 55 percent. Negotiation would also raise revenue for businesses and reduce employer provided health insurance costs. Lowering drug prices would help small businesses recover from the pandemic and thrive for years to come. 

PRESS CALL:

WHO:
U.S. Representative Angie Craig (D-MN-02)
Kristi Martin, Senior Advisor, Small Business for America’s Future
Candace Combs, Owner of Combs Business Consulting and In-Symmetry Spa and Small Business for America’s Future Small Business Council Member
Brad Woodhouse, Executive Director of Protect Our Care

WHAT: Virtual Press Conference to Highlight Impact of High Drug Prices on Small Businesses

WHERE: Register for the Event Here

WHEN: Friday, July 23 at 1:00 PM ET // 12:00 PM CT

Watch the Event Here

Washington, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), former Biden administration senior advisor and former Obama Acting CMS Administrator Andy Slavitt, senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security Dr. Jennifer Nuzzo, and family physician and public health expert Dr. Jeff Huebner joined Defend The Science for a virtual press conference to counter the COVID-19 disinformation that is endangering millions of Americans and discuss the efforts of the Biden administration to put an end to the pandemic. 

With the highly-contagious Delta variant on the rise, unvaccinated people of all ages are becoming seriously ill and dying from the virus as many Republican leaders are actively undermining vaccination efforts and spreading dangerous conspiracy theories. Today’s event follows Tuesday’s hearing by the United States Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP), where Republican Senators Rand Paul and Roger Marshall attacked public health experts and repeated conspiracy theories to cover for the Trump Administration’s disastrous handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

“As the Delta variant surges, getting vaccinated could mean life or death for many Americans. That’s why we must stop the dangerous disinformation and attacks on our scientists – including Dr. Fauci – that are ultimately threatening Americans’ lives, undermining our public health experts, and inhibiting our nation’s recovery from the pandemic. We’ve got to continue to call out wild accusations and conspiracy theories when we see them and work overtime to deliver the facts to the American people,” said Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-MD).  

“There’s never been a greater time for all of us to pull together. This is exactly what the President is asking the country to do and exactly what he’s trying to do,” said Andy Slavitt, former CMS Administrator and former COVID-19 senior advisor under the Biden administration. “We have a tool that can stop it, and that should give us great comfort. So the people that are getting sick, going to the hospital, and dying in 2021, this is almost entirely preventable.”

“We are in a very, very worrisome phase right now. We have obviously made important strides against this virus, but unfortunately our efforts have slowed and our rollout of vaccines is meeting tremendous amounts of resistance that is setting us back farther than we need to be,” said Dr. Jennifer Nuzzo, DrPH, SM, at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security. “The vast majority of anti-vaccination content on the internet stems from 12 personalities who are making a tremendous amount of money off of spreading lies — it’s a more than a $36 million industry. They are making money, but people are dying.”

“We’re at a point in this pandemic, due to the miraculous vaccines that we have, where nearly every death is preventable,” said Dr. Jeff Huebner, MD, a family medicine physician in Madison, WI. “More people will die tragically and we’re not going to be able to get back to our jobs and our schools with the same confidence we would if people were vaccinated.”

“As COVID-19 cases spike across the country, hospitals are once again becoming overwhelmed and Americans are needlessly dying of a now preventable disease,” said Protect Our Care Chair Leslie Dach. “Republicans should be doing everything in their power to get shots in arms and put an end to this crisis, but instead they are spreading disinformation and fueling vaccine hesitancy. We must reverse course, defend the science and ensure that Americans get vaccinated before it’s too late.” 

“Parth” Is Running on Digital Platforms Statewide

Watch the 30-Second Ad Here

Watch the 15-Second Ad Here

New Jersey — Protect Our Care launched its second digital ad in New Jersey as part of its seven-figure ad campaign about prescription drug prices. The ad features Parth, a patient from New Jersey whose daughter has diabetes. Her family has been forced to put off making vital repairs to her home to ensure her daughter can get the insulin she needs to survive. In the ad, Parth tells her personal story of struggling to afford lifesaving prescriptions and relays the importance of giving Medicare the power to negotiate with drug companies for lower prices for all Americans. 

The ad is part of The Campaign to Reduce Drug Prices, a grassroots and communications campaign calling for comprehensive legislation to lower drug prices. The ad is running on digital platforms, focusing particularly on older New Jerseyans. Protect Our Care will continue to run ads and host events both nationally and in 14 key states, including New Jersey, throughout the summer.

“Parth and her daughter’s story is all too familiar in New Jersey and across the country,” said Protect Our Care Executive Director Brad Woodhouse. “While drug companies spend billions on stock buybacks, raise executive pay, and continue to hike the price of drugs, millions of Americans are forced to choose between affording the medicines they need to survive or paying for essentials. Americans should not have to pay two or three times more for their medicines than people in other countries. It’s time for New Jersey lawmakers to do the right thing and support giving Medicare the power to negotiate for lower drug prices. The time to act is now.”

Script for “Parth” (:30s):

My daughter was diagnosed at age three with type 1 diabetes.

If my daughter doesn’t get insulin she could go into diabetic ketoacidosis which can result in coma or death.

Drug companies keep raising prices of prescription drugs.

We have had to prioritize paying for her medications.

We have a broken tub and we can’t fix it.

That’s just things we don’t do right now.

We have to let Medicare negotiate lower drug prices. It’s time for Congress to act.

Script for “Parth” (:15s):

My daughter was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes.

Drug companies keep raising prices.

We have a broken tub and we can’t fix it.

We have had to prioritize paying for her medications.

We have to let Medicare negotiate lower drug prices.

***MEDIA ADVISORY FOR WEDNESDAY, JULY 21, 2021***

TODAY: State Elected Officials and Health Care Storytellers Call for Congressional Action to Lower Prescription Drug Prices

Washington, DC — On Wednesday, July 21, state elected officials along with health care advocates and storytellers will join Protect Our Care for events to emphasize the impact of high prescription drug prices and to call for Congress to take action on this urgent issue.

In 2019, House Democrats passed the Lower Drug Costs Now Act (H.R. 3), bold legislation to give Medicare the power to negotiate for lower drug costs — the single most effective measure to bring down drug prices. In April, House Democrats reintroduced this legislation, giving Congress another opportunity to lower prescription drug costs and meet the demands of voters.

This summer, Protect Our Care launched The Campaign to Reduce Drug Prices with an ad running on television nationally and digitally in 12 key states to demonstrate the urgent need for comprehensive legislation to lower drug prices.

WEDNESDAY

NEW HAMPSHIRE

WHO:
State Sen. Tom Sherman
Kayla Montgomery, Planned Parenthood of Northern New England
Heather Stockwell, Rights and DemocracyNH
Stacey Smith, health care advocate

WHERE: Register for the Event Here

WHEN: Wednesday, July 21 at 10:00 AM ET

ARIZONA

WHO:
State Rep. Melody Hernandez
Dr. Gabrielle Goodrick, health care advocate
Angie Taylor, Arizona patient

WHERE: Register for the Event Here

WHEN: Wednesday, July 21, at 1:00 PM ET // 10:00 AM AT

***MEDIA ADVISORY FOR WEDNESDAY, JULY 21 AT 1:30 PM ET // 12:30 PM CT***

PRESS CALL: U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen, Former Biden COVID-19 Senior Advisor Andy Slavitt, Dr. Jennifer Nuzzo (Johns Hopkins), Dr. Jeff Huebner, Protect Our Care Will Counter Flood of COVID-19 Disinformation

Washington, D.C. — On Wednesday, July 21 at 1:30 PM ET // 12:30 PM CT, U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), former Obama and Biden administration advisor and former acting CMS Administrator Andy Slavitt, Dr. Jennifer Nuzzo, senior scholar and associate professor at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health; Dr. Jeff Huebner, a public health expert and family physician from Madison, Wisconsin; and Protect Our Care Chair Leslie Dach will hold a virtual press conference with Defend the Science to counter the disinformation and wacky conspiracy theories that are endangering millions of Americans and discuss the efforts of the Biden administration.

Right now, coordinated disinformation efforts from Republicans like unvaccinated Senator Rand Paul and Congressman Jim Jordan have led to vaccine hesitancy among millions of Americans and causing unnecessary deaths, despite widespread availability of the vaccine. As the Delta variant becomes dominant in the world and thousands of younger, unvaccinated Americans are becoming sick with this new strain of Covid-19, the time is now to end the disinformation that is keeping 37% of American adults unvaccinated. 

At Tuesday’s hearing of the United States Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP), Republican Senators Rand Paul and Roger Marshall repeated ridiculous conspiracy theories to cover for the Trump Administration’s disastrous handling of the Covid-19 pandemic. They want to shift blame to public health experts who are leading us out of the crisis, like Dr. Anthony Fauci. In the process, they are threatening the lives of far too many Americans. 

PRESS CALL:

WHO:
U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-MD)
Andy Slavitt, former Administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and senior advisor to the White House COVID-19 Response Coordinator
Jennifer Nuzzo, DrPH, SM, Senior Scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, an Associate Professor in the Department of Environmental Health and Engineering and the Department of Epidemiology at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, and a Senior Fellow for Global Health at the Council on Foreign Relations.
Jeff Huebner, MD, practicing family physician from Madison, Wisconsin, and Board of Directors, Doctors for America
Leslie Dach, Chair of Protect Our Care

WHAT: Virtual Press Conference to Counter Flood of COVID-19 Disinformation

WHERE: Register for the Event Here

WHEN: Wednesday, July 21 at 1:30 PM ET // 12:30 PM CT

Protect Our Care Announces 19-State Tour In August

Care Force One’s “Lower Cost, Better Care” Bus Tour Will Travel From Maine to California Advocating for Lower Drug Prices and Lower Premiums, Expanded Health Care Coverage and Benefits In the ACA, Medicaid and Medicare 

Washington, D.C. — Throughout the August Congressional recess, Protect Our Care will be running its third nationwide bus tour to demonstrate the urgent need for lowering health costs, expanding coverage, and reducing racial disparities in care. Kicking off in Bangor, Maine, on August 9th, Care Force One’s “Lower Cost, Better Care” bus tour will travel throughout the Northeast before making stops across the Midwest and Southeast, and concluding with stops on the West Coast.   

Care Force One will roll into key districts and states for events with Members of Congress, local elected officials, health care advocates and storytellers to ensure critical health care measures supported by President Biden remain in upcoming budget reconciliation legislation. Specifically, Protect Our Care is fighting to give Medicare the power to negotiate for lower drug prices for all Americans, create a federal solution to close the Medicaid coverage gap, expand Medicare benefits to include vision, dental and hearing, and make permanent the premium reductions included in the American Rescue Plan so millions of people can continue to access low-cost coverage.

The tour will promote the work of President Biden and dozens of Democratic lawmakers who are leading the charge to advance American health care and hold Republicans accountable for continuing to reject measures to improve care and lower costs for the American people. Protect Our Care will ensure Americans know if their elected officials are working for the American people or if they are working to protect health care industry profits. 

“While Members of Congress go home to their districts this August recess, they’re going to have a chance to show their constituents whether they stand by President Biden’s agenda to improve health care for millions or if they side with Big Pharma and other special interests,” said Protect Our Care Executive Director Brad Woodhouse. “Throughout this tour, Americans from all walks of life will speak out about the pressing need to lower prescription drug prices, close the Medicaid coverage gap, expand Medicare benefits to include hearing, dental, and vision, and further reduce health costs for people purchasing coverage on their own. When Congress returns this fall, we have a once in a generation opportunity to transform health care for the American people, and Care Force One will crisscross the country this summer making the case for getting this critical job done.” 

Protect Our Care’s Care Force One will make stops in:
Bangor, Maine on Monday, August 9, 2021
Portland, Maine on Monday, August 9, 2021
Burlington, Vermont on Tuesday, August 10, 2021
Manchester, New Hampshire on Tuesday, August 10, 2021
Concord, New Hampshire on Wednesday, August 11, 2021
Boston, Massachusetts on Wednesday, August 11, 2021
Teaneck, New Jersey on Thursday, August 12, 2021
Allentown, Pennsylvania on Thursday, August 12, 2021
New York, New York on Friday, August 13, 2021
New Brunswick, New Jersey on Monday, August 16, 2021
Scranton, Pennsylvania on Monday, August 16, 2021
Burlington County, New Jersey on Tuesday, August 17, 2021
Wilmington, Delaware on Tuesday, August 17, 2021
Dover, Delaware on Tuesday, August 17, 2021
Morgantown, West Virginia on Wednesday, August 18, 2021
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on Wednesday, August 18, 2021
Youngstown, Ohio on Thursday, August 19, 2021
Columbus, Ohio on Thursday, August 19, 2021
Milwaukee, Wisconsin on Friday, August 20, 2021
Madison, Wisconsin on Friday, August 20, 2021
Parkersburg, West Virginia on Monday, August 23, 2021
Charleston, West Virginia on Monday, August 23, 2021
Raleigh, North Carolina on Tuesday, August 24, 2021
Charlotte, North Carolina on Tuesday, August 24, 2021
Columbia, South Carolina on Tuesday, August 24, 2021
Atlanta, Georgia on Wednesday, August 25, 2021
Savannah, Georgia on Wednesday, August 25, 2021
Orlando, Florida on Thursday, August 26, 2021
Tampa, Florida on Thursday, August 26, 2021
Denver, Colorado on Monday, August 30, 2021
Flagstaff, Arizona on Tuesday, August 31, 2021
Phoenix, Arizona on Tuesday, August 31, 2021
Tucson, Arizona on Wednesday, September 1, 2021
San Diego, California on Thursday, September 2, 2021
Anaheim, California on Thursday, September 2, 2021
Las Vegas, Nevada on Friday, September 3, 2021

By the Numbers: What Democratic Health Care Priorities Would Mean for Americans

• Lowering Prescription Drug Prices. 53 percent of American adults, or roughly 130 million people, take prescription drugs in the U.S. and stand to benefit from legislation to lower drug prices. Allowing Medicare to negotiate drug prices would save patients $158 billion at the pharmacy counter. Nine in 10 Americans support legislation to give Medicare the power to negotiate for lower drug prices. 
• Closing The Coverage Gap. More than 2 million Americans living in the 12 holdout states would have access to affordable, quality health coverage through Medicaid expansion. People of color make up 60 percent of those living in the health insurance coverage gap.
• Expanding Coverage. 4.2 million uninsured people would gain coverage if the American Rescue Plan’s subsidies are made permanent, and millions more would continue to save on health care costs. 
• Expanding Medicare To Include Dental, Vision, and Hearing. Nearly 38 million traditional Medicare enrollees would gain dental, vision, and hearing coverage. Due to lack of coverage, nearly half of Medicare beneficiaries did not seek dental care in the past year, with people of color, individuals with low-incomes, and residents of rural areas experiencing the lowest access. 

Protect Our Care & Small Business for America’s Future Release New Report As Part of Lower Rx Summer

Today, Protect Our Care is kicking off Week 7 of Lower Rx Summer with a report co-sponsored by Small Business for America’s Future underscoring how high drug prices hurt small businesses. Throughout the week, Protect Our Care will host events and release additional research to demonstrate the urgency for drug pricing reform. Lowering drug prices would help small businesses recover from the pandemic and thrive for years to come. 

KEY POINTS:

• The rising cost of prescription drug prices is crushing small businesses. Nearly one in three small businesses currently providing health benefits to their workers have considered ending their sponsored coverage largely as a result of rising health care costs. 93 percent of small business owners believe the prescription drug market needs to undergo changes, with 66 percent calling for a major overhaul. 
• Small businesses are forced to pass along the increased costs of providing coverage to customers and workers. Many small businesses report wanting to “do the right thing” when it comes to providing health coverage for their workers. Tragically, that goal is being pushed increasingly out of reach, as many owners are being forced to raise prices on goods and services and/or increase deductibles and premiums in order to continue providing coverage. 
• Small businesses demand bold action to lower prescription drug prices. Regardless of where they sit on the political spectrum, small business owners want strong government action on this issue, with 87 percent stating it is important for the Biden-Harris administration and Congress to lower prescription medication prices. In a recent survey, small business owners overwhelmingly supported solutions such as capping out-of-pocket costs for seniors, Medicare negotiating drug prices, prohibiting anti-competitive behaviors that delay price competition, and penalizing drug companies that increase their prices faster than inflation. 

“The cost of healthcare and prescription drugs have skyrocketed for many small businesses and it’s having a real impact on their growth,” said Small Business for America’s Future Co-Chair Erika Gonzalez, an Allergy & Asthma Medical Professional and small business owner based in San Antonio. “If we are going to have a strong small business sector and economic recovery, we need our policymakers to act to rein in these costs. It’s an urgent priority of small businesses.”

“The American economy is paying the price for high drug costs,” said Protect Our Care Chair Leslie Dach. “As prescription drug prices skyrocket, small businesses are paying more and more for health care, forcing them to increase costs and lower wages, all while big drug companies are spending billions on stock buybacks and shareholder dividends. The future of small businesses depends on standing up to Big Pharma’s greed and giving Medicare the power to negotiate for lower drug prices.” 

In June, Protect Our Care announced Lower Rx Summer as part of The Campaign to Reduce Drug Prices. Lower Rx Summer consists of themed weeks of action to illustrate the urgent need for legislation to lower drug prices principally by giving Medicare the power to negotiate with drug companies for lower prices for all Americans.

Remaining Theme Weeks for Lower Rx Summer
Week 7 (July 19): How High Drug Prices Hurt Small Businesses
Week 8 (July 26): How High Drug Prices Hurt Children
Week 9 (August 2): Expanding Medicare Benefits—Dental, Vision, And Hearing

Read the new report on how high drug costs hurt small businesses here.