Dear neighbors,

When I talk to constituents, one of the things I hear most often is that the prices of prescription drugs are out of control. And high prices mean people can’t afford lifesaving and life-sustaining medications. When people can’t afford their prescriptions, they cut back, or skip doses, or cut pills in two, and that is dangerous.

That’s why I’ve been focused for years on keeping prices down. You can read about the history of that work here.

Today I want to tell you about a recognition of our recent accomplishments and what I’m working on this year.

Last year, I passed SB 5729, which permanently capped patients’ out-of-pocket cost for insulin at $35 a month. Yesterday, I received the national Diabetes Patient Advocacy Coalition (DPAC) Legislative Champion Award for the work on insulin pricing over several years that culminated in that bill.

I’m proud to say that many other states and the federal government have been following our lead in capping out-of-pocket costs for insulin.  Insulin is a lifesaving medication that has been in use for more than 100 years. It’s very cheap to produce, and in our society there’s no good reason that anyone who needs it should have to go without. But there are still some barriers to access.

That’s why this year, I’m sponsoring SB 5776, which would enable patients in need to access a month’s emergency supply of insulin at $10 once a year.

I’m also working on protecting patients who need another absolutely critical, lifesaving medication that has similarly been in use for decades and is cheap to produce: epinephrine.

For people — especially children — with severe allergies, EpiPens are not optional, they are a necessity. Anaphylactic shock can kill. But EpiPens can cost up to $600 or more for patients even though they only cost the manufacturer just a few dollars to produce.

SB 5775, which I’m sponsoring this year, would rein in those costs by capping the cost of epinephrine autoinjectors at $60 for a two-pack.

Stay in Touch

Thank you to all the constituents and advocates who came to Olympia this week to make your voices heard. If you’d like to follow what I’m working on, you can like my official legislative Facebook page here.

Please don’t hesitate to stay in touch. Stay safe and take care.

Always,

Sen. Karen Keiser
Senate President Pro Tempore
Chair, Senate Labor & Commerce Committee