Democrats’ latest drug pricing bills reflect Sanders’ rhetoric

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) Tuesday accused drug companies of “getting away with murder,” asked rhetorically “how many people need to die before Congress takes on the greed of the pharmaceutical industry?” and introduced legislation that matched the tone of his comments.

There is little chance that the three drug pricing bills Sanders extolled at a Senate hearing will be enacted, but they will set the outer boundary for give-and-take over provisions that could be included in an infrastructure bill that Democrats plan to push through Congress using the budget reconciliation process. The White House and Democratic congressional leadership have indicated that they plan to include drug price control measures in the infrastructure bill. ...