DETROIT — Members of the Michigan House of Representatives will hold two town halls in the next week to discuss a package of bills passed by the Michigan Senate that would help lower the cost of presciption drugs.
The bill package would create a Prescription Drug Affordability Board (PDAB) that would have the authority to review expensive drugs and set an upper payment limit which would lower costs. Senate Bills 483, 484 and 485 would establish a PDAB to help make life-saving prescriptions more affordable for Michigan residents and make pharmaceutical companies more accountable to the people of Michigan.
As the bill waits for action in the State House, a group of lawmakers plan to hold town halls in the next week. On Friday, April 19th, Representative Sharon MacDonell will host a town hall in Royal Oak and will be joined by Representatives Helena Scott, Regina Weiss and Natalie Price. The event will be moderated by Mel Seifert from Michigan AARP and will feature panelists Monique Stanton from the Michigan League for Public Policy and Justin Mendoza with Universities Allied for Essential Medicines.
On Monday, April 22nd, Representative Donavan McKinney will host a town hall in Detroit. Joining Rep. McKinney will be Representative Mike McFall and Majority Floor Leader Abraham Aiyash. These town halls follow an earlier town hall in Trenton that featured Senate sponsor Darrin Camilleri and Representative Jaime Churches.
These town halls seem to show momentum for the bill package that was part of Governor Gretchen Whitmer’s “What’s Next” speech in the late Summer of 2023, where she called for passage of the bill to help lower costs.
