The Ohio “Drug Price Relief Act” Has Some Enemies

In November 2017, the state of Ohio will have a proposed statute included on the ballot for voters to approve, known as the “Ohio Drug Price Relief Act.” The proposal was written by California activist Michael Weinstein, the same author of California’s “Proposition 61,” which was not only defeated (53% to 47%) in the 2016 election season, but was also opposed by every major newspaper in the state. The Ohio proposition would prohibit Ohio from paying more for prescription drugs than the lowest price paid by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs. It would also give the four co-sponsors of the ballot issue an unprecedented right to intervene – at taxpayer expense – in any post-election legal challenge that may be filed against the initiative or its implementation. It is expected that this ballot issue will likely gain its fair share of enemies, the way California’s similar proposition did. So far, there is one seemingly well put together group, Ohioans Against the Deceptive Rx Ballot Issue. The coalition is made up of associations of doctors, nurses, pharmacists and psychiatrists, veterans groups, at least one faith alliance, and business groups. The Ohio Manufacturers Association and the Ohio Chamber of Commerce are also members. “There are seven million Ohioans, about 64 percent of the state’s population, who don’t get their drugs through the state programs they get it through private insurance, insurance provided by employers, Medicai...
Source: Policy and Medicine - Category: American Health Authors: Source Type: blogs