Health groups make pitch for more affordable drugs and insurance

Jun. 15--As the national battle rages on over drug prices and health insurance, Broward County residents and health advocates met today to praise the safety net of the Affordable Care Act and show their concern about any possibility of their medical coverage going away.

"We can all agree the Affordable Care Act is not perfect, but it has done a lot of good for a lot of people in our country," Deutch said.

Across the country, congressional Democrats held similar events to bring attention to the big healthcare issues being debated in Washington, D.C., calling their efforts Health Care for All Americans Day of Action.

At stake in the political squabbles: the crippling cost of life-saving drugs and coverage for chronic conditions or life-threatening diseases -- even as advances in medicine become available.

Inside a room at Broward College, Deutch acknowledged Floridian's frustration with the high prices they pay for medication and the complex web of the healthcare system they must navigate, as well as panic over changes to guaranteed coverage for people with pre-existing conditions.

"The idea of stripping away benefits from any part of our healthcare system is outrageous," Deutch said.

For Jeffrey Schultz of Fort Lauderdale, whose daughter, Lanie Jones, and wife, Kathy, both have battled cancers, the healthcare debate is not a matter of mere politics, but rather life and death.

"If the ACA is wiped out, it would be devastating to my daughter and wife," he said. "My daughter is 35 and has had a pre-existing condition since 18 months old. She will never be cancer-free and will always have a pre-existing condition. We are doing whatever we can do to make sure pre-existing coverage can't go away."

With a disease like Alzheimer's on the rise , Jennifer Braisted, public policy manager for the Alzheimer's Association Southeast Florida Chapter, said any deterrent to memory assessments could be devastating in places like Florida because Hispanics and African Americans are more likely to develop Alzheimer's. As many as 200,000 people are living with younger onset before age 65.

"Early detection and diagnosis is crucial and gives them better quality of life," Braisted said.

Beverly Provost of Coral Springs said her concerns center on prescription drug prices. Her son was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at age 7. He is now 14, and takes a daily regimen of insulin.

"If you go a matter of days without insulin, you will die," Provost said. Yet, with "good insurance" and a medication card, Provost said the family paid more than $3,700 out of pocket last year and her insurer paid more than $19,000. Provost said she can't imagine if she were uninsured. "If someone has access to insulin, this condition can be so well managed."

Joey Wynn, former chairman of the South Florida AIDS Network, put this question out to Republicans: "What do you have that is equal or better to the Affordable Care Act for the millions of Americans across this great nation that rely on it to stay alive? This isn't about I prefer this over that. This is about if I don't get my medicine I die."

In Orlando, Rep. Val Demings used Health Care for All Americans Day of Action to hold a round table discussion to address the soaring costs of prescription drugs and release a new report on diabetes medication prices in her district. The report shows that because Medicare is not allowed to negotiate drug prices, the costs for diabetes medications to Medicare are nearly four times higher than in the United Kingdom, five times higher than in Australia, and three times higher than in Canada. For uninsured patients, the costs can be as much as 21 times higher.

Republicans, however, chimed into the healthcare conversation, too. U.S. Sen. Rick Scott held a round table discussion with healthcare leaders and patients in Doral to draw attention to his efforts to make healthcare more affordable for families.

Scott touted his healthcare initiatives: the America First Drug Pricing Plan to address the soaring costs of prescription drugs by promoting transparency, the Protecting Patients from Surprise Medical Bills Act to end the practice of surprise medical billing, and the Prescription Drug Price Reporting Act to create a consumer-friendly database of prescription drug prices.

After hearing from Florida families and healthcare leaders about their experiences dealing with the soaring cost of prescription drugs, Scott said, "No patient should ever have to go without life-saving drugs because they can't afford them, and I'm fighting every day to get something done to lower the cost of prescription drugs."

Cindy Krischer Goodman can be reached at [email protected], 954-356-4661, Twitter and Instagram @cindykgoodman

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