Affordable Insulin Now Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. PASCRELL. Madam Speaker, the Affordable Insulin Now Act will cap out-of-pocket insulin costs at $35 a month--not a miracle by any stretch of the imagination. And anyone who supports legislation in this order and others where we address other diseases obviously, we are working on new situations just about every month. So because you are working on it and you are trying to find a balance of the free market, and where the price goes without fixing the price of what something will cost, I mean, we have been called worse things than Socialists. When you come to this debate, I'll settle on that word.

Well, what does that mean?

You want to get into a debate about socialism?

I served in the Armed Forces. I fought for my country. I am tired of being called names.

Seven million Americans who use insulin want to stay alive. The average insulin costs rose 54 percent. We have heard that before.

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Mr. PASCRELL. Madam Speaker, when insulin was discovered, Warren Harding was the President and the New York Giants won the World Series, yet there was no television to watch the New York Giants.

Insulin costs are a national disgrace. For a drug discovered over 100 years ago, $1,000 price tag for a single vial is an outrage. You know it, and I know it.

So get beyond the argument that we are all a bunch of Socialists because we want to help people. We are doing what the folks sent us here to do. We can't do it on every drug. We need the technology. The gentleman from Arizona is right on target. It will save lives.

If we can't do that, then what the heck are we doing here?

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