Legislation to lower prescription drug costs
On behalf of our 230,000 members, AARP Maine thanks Rep. Jared Golden for participating in our recent tele-town hall on prescription drug costs. Nearly 3,500 Mainers participated in the forum and many asked questions of Golden live during the call.
Much of the discussion focused on the latest news from Washington, including two bills which will likely be voted on soon.
Currently under consideration in the House of Representatives is H.R. 3, the Lower Drug Costs Now Act of 2019. Under H.R. 3, the Secretary of Health and Human Services would negotiate prices for at least 25 of the most expensive brand-name medicines. The bill would also cap out-of-pocket prescription drug costs for Medicare beneficiaries at $2,000 per year. In addition AARP is pushing for other improvements to Medicare such as coverage for dental, vision and hearing care.
In the Senate, we urge Senate leadership to bring the bipartisan Prescription Drug Pricing Reduction Act of 2019 to a floor vote this year. The bill would cap out-of-pocket costs for Medicare Part D beneficiaries and require drug manufacturers to provide a rebate to Medicare if the prices of their products increase faster than inflation.
AARP Maine is committed to working with our federal lawmakers to lower prescription drug costs. Too many Mainers of all ages struggle to afford the medications they need to stay healthy, and to even stay alive. It shouldn’t be that way. We cannot wait any longer for this to change and urge our elected leaders to pass these bills.
Patricia Pinto
AARP Maine
Volunteer State President
Portland
Waterville mayor was right to leave meeting
I have read several articles in the Bangor Daily News lately about Waterville Mayor Nick Isgro. It is obvious that the source of the stories is the Waterville Sentinel. I moved to Millinocket from Waterville In July 2019. While a Waterville resident, I attended every City Council meeting and every budget meeting. While certainly not an expert on Waterville politics, I do know the issues and the players. Even though I no longer live in Waterville, I continue to live stream their City Council meetings.
I watched the unfortunate situation that occurred at the Oct.15 council meeting I have been to many council meetings where Bob Vear was in attendance. The behavior he demonstrated on Oct. 15 was not typical of him. And the mayor also surely knew this. Vear did not “read” a speech. He screamed what he had to say, and when his time was up he refused to leave the podium. He was out of control, and in an effort to defuse the situation, the mayor attempted to adjourn the meeting.
The other council members continued the meeting. The mayor put his papers in his briefcase and walked out of the meeting (not stormed out, as the BDN reported). He did the correct thing. I like and respect Vear. However, this situation was clearly brought on by his behavior, and some members of the City Council seem to have chosen to take advantage of this man and the situation.
Before you write any story, please take the time to verify the facts yourself. Do not make your source another newspaper that may have an ax to grind.
Sandra Sullivan
Millinocket
Time for a change
Conservative political commentator George Will, who writes regular columns for The Washington Post and provides commentary for NBC News and MSNBC, recently characterized today’s Republican Party as “docile,” “supine” and “invertebrate.”
I find these adjectives aptly apply to Maine Sen. Susan Collins, whose reputation as a “moderate” is in tatters after having voted for Trump’s budget-busting tax cut and confirmation of the manifestly unqualified Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court.
Prior to the 2016 election, Collins stated that she would not be voting for Trump because he “lacks the temperament, self-discipline and judgment required to be president.” Subsequent events have proven this opinion only too true. Nonetheless, in 2017, she voted with the Republicans 87 percent of the time, more than in any of her previous 20 years in the U.S. Senate.
Despite having promised during her first run for the Senate in 1996 that she would serve just two terms, by the 2020 election she will have served four terms, or 24 years. She has not held a town hall to listen to the unscripted views of her constituents since her early years in the Senate, according to the Portland Press Herald. It’s way past time for a change: Sara Gideon for Senate in 2020!
Phil Locke
Bangor