Southwest Washington seniors and other patients pay way too much for prescription drugs and it’s not uncommon for them to skip doses, cut pills in half or forego filling prescriptions altogether. This is not right and it’s why I’ve focused my efforts in Congress on helping seniors on fixed incomes pay less for insulin, blood pressure medicine and cholesterol-lowering drugs.

Here are a few ways I’m helping lower the cost of prescription drugs:

• I helped introduce the Lower Costs, More Cures Act which would cap seniors’ out-of-pocket costs at $3,100 for the year. The average cost per month for seniors with high drug costs is $2,140. This reform would have helped about one million Americans save money in 2017. This bipartisan bill also caps insulin at $50 a month for seniors, making this life-saving drug more affordable.

• I coauthored the bipartisan Safe and Affordable Drugs from Canada Act which would remove the ban on Americans buying Canadian drugs that are already being safely used by Canadian consumers. Many Washingtonians face significantly higher prescription drug prices here in the U.S. compared to Canada. This solution could save individuals and families thousands of dollars in medication costs every year.

• I also worked across the aisle to lend bipartisan support to an important package of legislation to drive down prescription drug prices. The bill, H.R.987 – the Strengthening Health Care and Lowering Prescription Drug Costs Act, removes barriers that are stopping lower-cost generic drugs from being sold to American patients.