State Senator — Who's Also A Doctor — Hailing New Prescription Drug Legislation

HARTFORD, CT — Senator Jeff Gordon (R - 35th District, who is also practicing physician, announced Wednesday what he called "a major victory for the people of Connecticut" with the passage of House Bill 7192, landmark legislation aimed at lowering the cost of prescription medications.

As a founder and co-Chair of the Legislature’s Bipartisan Drug Pricing Task Force, Gordon helped "lead the charge to tackle out-of-control drug costs that burden hard-working people, their families, seniors, and businesses."

He added, "As a doctor, I’ve seen firsthand how high drug prices hurt people. We've all heard the stories from across the state, people skipping doses, rationing insulin, or making impossible choices between paying for medicine or food. It"s getting worse because of the affordability crisis in Connecticut and out of control drug pricing. That’s unacceptable. This new law is about standing up for people, putting patients before profits, and delivering real results. This is a historic step toward making life-saving medications more affordable and accessible throughout Connecticut."

H.B. 7192 introduces comprehensive measures to crack down on price gouging, to strengthen transparency in drug pricing decisions, and to protect access to local pharmacies so that insurance companies do not knock them out of coverage networks.

"This new law that I helped create and get passed strongly increases oversight of pharmacy benefit managers," Gordon said. "These are the middlemen who negotiate behind the scenes on drug prices. They get billions of dollars of profits from the deals they make. But people don’t get the benefits. They still pay high prices. Enough is enough! This new law pulls back the curtain, increases transparency, and sets the stage for PBMs make deals that truly to help people by lowering drug prices."

The new law reflects months of bipartisan collaboration, public meetings, wide range of public and stakeholder input, and a shared commitment to prioritize people over special interests," Gordon said.

"I thank my fellow Task Force Co-Chairs – Senator Matt Lesser, Representative Jillian Gilchrest, and Representative Tracy Marra - and Governor Lamont, for working with me," Gordon said. "I know that when we work together on a common purpose, we can get good things done. What we did and how we did it as leaders of the Bipartisan Prescription Drug Task Force shows it."

H.B. 7192 will take effect this year. It is part of Sen. Gordon’s larger, ongoing efforts to make health care more affordable for more people, improve timely access to essential medical services, and reform the decision-making of state agencies so that they better serve the people of Connecticut, not special interests.