WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, Patients For Affordable Drugs Action expanded its campaign calling on voters to support candidates who will stand up to Big Pharma and fight to lower prescription drug prices with the release of digital ads in four new states. The ads, featuring patient testimonials, were launched in Florida, New Hampshire, Nevada, and Ohio, and are a key part of a seven-figure national ad and grassroots campaign to elevate patient stories and push candidates to detail their plans to lower drug prices.
“Patients from all over the country are speaking up to share their struggles and ensure we elect candidates who will take action to lower prescription drug prices,” said David Mitchell, a cancer patient and the president of Patients For Affordable Drugs Action. “Big Pharma is spending millions to maintain a rigged system that benefits drug corporations. Americans are fighting back with their voices and their votes.”
The ads will run on digital platforms across the state and feature prominently on a campaign website that includes the stories of patients across the country facing skyrocketing drug prices. The website serves as an action hub and gives voters digital tools to demand that 2020 candidates commit to plans to lower drug prices.
The latest state digital ads feature:
Clayton “DJ” Martin, Jacksonville, FL, sickle cell disease: “As a father with sickle cell, with a daughter with the sickle cell trait, I worry about her future because of the high prices of drugs.”
Rose Keller, cystic fibrosis: “The high cost of drug prices has stripped me, and other young patients like me, of the opportunity to dream about what we might be when we grow up.”
Don Kreis, Rose’s father, Concord, NH: “For my sake, and for the sake of my daughter, I hope you will vote for candidates who fight Big Pharma and stand up for lower drug prices.”
Tammy de la Cruz, North Las Vegas, NV, chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy: “The cost of this medication is anywhere from $1,000 to $1,500, and I get it every week. Without it, I fear I will become paralyzed again.”
Kolton Chapman, Pickerington, OH, ulcerative colitis: “When I was on Entyvio, I was responsible for paying $2,000 a month. It was more than I owe in student loans, so I ended up filing for bankruptcy because of my medical debt.”
The national campaign launched last week with a TV and digital ad featuring patient Candice Brown, who depends on a $6,700-per-month medication to manage her ulcerative colitis. The program will run in 15 key states across the country and give voters a platform to call on candidates to speak out on drug prices.
Patients For Affordable Drugs Action is a political action committee founded to make sure politicians hear from real patients and not just the pharmaceutical industry political machine. Big Pharma spent $298.2 million lobbying in 2019 and donated $29.3 millionto help elect politicians in the last election cycle. Patients For Affordable Drugs Action received principal funding from Action Now Initiative, LLC. Patients For Affordable Drugs Action is an independent organization and refuses funding from any organization that profits from the development or distribution of prescription drugs.
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Paid for by Patients For Affordable Drugs Action, www.p4adaction.org. Not authorized by any candidate or candidate's committee.