CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Affordability, transparency and accountability are what many West Virginians overwhelmingly said they want to see from pharmaceutical companies, according to the results of a new poll from AARP West Virginia.
In that poll, more than 88 percent of those questioned indicated they would support prescription drug transparency laws, like those recently passed in other states, requiring drug companies to “report the reasons behind dramatic increases” in prescription drug prices.
“This is one of the strongest ones that I’ve ever seen in terms of intensity and support for the issue,” said Mark Blankenship, president and CEO of Mark Blankenship Enterprises, the polling company that conducted the AARP survey of 800 registered West Virginia voters.
Gaylene Miller, state director for AARP West Virginia, said the survey results were verification.
“These numbers confirm what we know and that is that West Virginians, regardless of age but likely voters, are interested in finding out why prescription drugs cost so much,” she said during an appearance with Blankenship on Tuesday’s MetroNews “Talkline.”
AARP state director Gaylene Miller and pollster Mark Blankenship talk with Hoppy Kercheval at the Capitol about a poll on prescription drugs. WATCH: https://t.co/wkudfIRZCB pic.twitter.com/SmEr9CDIFq
— MetroNews (@WVMetroNews) February 11, 2020
Bills addressing disclosure and accountability from the pharmaceutical industry were pending in both the House Government Organization Committee, HB 4583, and the Senate Health Committee, SB 689, with movement possible this week, Miller said.
Last week, HB 4583 advanced out of the House Health and Human Resources Committee.
In general, those bills would mandate that drug manufacturers selling prescription drugs in West Virginia provide cost information, changes in cost information and prescription drug statistics to the West Virginia’s Auditor’s Office for publication on a searchable website.
“Will this necessarily reduce the costs of prescription drugs? Maybe, maybe not,” Miller said.
“But we do know that it will influence the marketplace.”