With the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act, politicians made a huge policy mistake in trying to bring down costs for American patients.
Instead of going after middlemen like Pharmacy Benefit Managers, who have been swallowing up drug rebates intended for patients, elected leaders sacrificed new treatments and reduced patient access.
As a former ICU nurse and current school nurse, I can confidently say the last thing patients need is fewer options. What if one of the medicines we miss out on is a cure for heart disease or cancer?
Protecting patients and lowering costs are both important. Congress should have used this opportunity to rid our system of middlemen who drive up costs – who the FTC is already looking into – and not threaten care.
Amy Heytens is an ICU and school nurse based in Austin, Texas.
