Grassley Discusses His Efforts to Lower Prescription Drug Prices at Local Pharmacy on 99 County Tour

06.30.2022

ESTHERVILLE, IOWA - Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) stopped at the Estherville Pharmacy today as part of his annual 99 county meetings across Iowa. Grassley held a question-and-answer session with 27 of their employees and customers.

"The Estherville Pharmacy serves their community by offering quality health care to their customers. We must keep local pharmacies strong and create more transparency on the middlemen who drive up costs for consumers and pharmacies. When Iowans relay their concerns at my question-and-answer sessions in every county, every year, I learn what issues matter most to them and am better able to represent them in Washington," Grassley said.

"Senator Grassley is working hard in Washington to help us provide transparency on pharmacy benefit manager fees and services they cover. These are measures that have operated in secrecy for years and were originally designed to help the consumer. Senator Grassley's bill will directly provide transparency to lead to independent pharmacies, like Estherville Pharmacy, to success in rural Iowa," Andy Spurgin, Vice President of Estherville Pharmacy said.

Grassley discussed a bipartisan bill he wrote that recently passed the Senate Commerce Committee to hold pharmacy benefit managers accountable for unfair and deceptive practices that often drive up the cost of prescription drugs. He also discussed his work to pass his bipartisan Prescription Drug Pricing Reduction Act (PDPRA), rural health care and physician recruitment legislation.

This is Grassley's 42nd year of holding meetings in every one of Iowa's 99 counties. Grassley has held at least one meeting in every county, every year since he was first elected to serve in the U.S. Senate. He takes questions on any subject. Iowans set the agenda.

Links to Grassley's social media posts can be found HEREand HERE. Follow along using the hashtag #99countymeetings.