WASHINGTON, D.C. — United States Sen. Tina Smith, D-Minn., helped lead an effort to lower prescription drug costs nationwide.
She co-sponsored the Ensuring Innovation Act with Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., that President Joe Biden signed into law Friday, April 23.
The law allows the Food and Drug Administration to make sure drug companies aren't doing the "evergreening" process, which is when they make subtle changes to a drug — like adding salt or changing a pill into a gel — in order to keep the prices high.
Smith said she hopes this will allow millions who take prescription drugs to catch up on doses they couldn't afford before.
"There's a lot of things we need to do bring prescription drug costs down — we pay more in this country than most places in the world — but (the Ensuring Innovation Act) is a step in the right direction," she said.
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About 3 in 10 Americans couldn't afford prescription drugs last year, which led to them skipping taking their medications, Smith said.
