Walter Kiln, editor of “County Highways,” spoke on SiriusXM’s Megin Kelly show recently, suggesting that Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders should “get the butt” to the White House. Kiln’s comments came in the context of Sanders’ long-standing criticism of the pharmaceutical industry, where he highlighted concerns about the diabetes drug Ozempic, noting it could be priced under $100.
During the conversation, Kelly brought up a recent executive order from Trump aimed at reducing drug prices, prompting Kiln to consider its implications. “This could save people up to 80% on their drug costs,” Kelly remarked, and raised concerns about potential lawsuits stemming from the order.
Kiln reflected on the situation, questioning whether the nation was more about politics than solving problems. He pointed out that in this case, Sanders and Trump were unexpectedly aligned on the issue. “Bernie has been vocal about this for quite some time,” he said. “He ought to take a stand and demonstrate some unity on the matter.”
On the day of the signing, members of Trump’s administration, including Robert F. Kennedy Jr. from the Department of Health and Human Services, supported the move to establish international drug pricing fairness.
By implementing the directive, which Trump predicted would lower U.S. prices significantly, the administration aims to address what it sees as “severe imbalances” due to pharmaceutical companies’ manipulation of pricing structures. Kiln dismissed the argument that the U.S. pays more to fund research and development as a misleading cover for corporate profits.
He criticized the traditional justification for high prices as a mere “fig leaf,” indicating that previous healthcare reforms, like Obamacare, failed to truly negotiate lower drug prices with pharmaceutical companies. He emphasized that if Congress couldn’t agree on addressing this issue, finding common ground on other matters would likely be just as challenging.
Sanders, despite previous attempts to push for drug cost reductions in Congress, responded to the executive order by acknowledging a shared concern about high drug prices but attributing the issue more to the “greedy pharmaceutical industry” than European pricing.
“To be clear, the problem isn’t that drug prices are too low abroad,” Sanders stated. “The real issue is the pharmaceutical industry’s massive profits at Americans’ expense.” He further warned that he expected Trump’s order to face legal challenges and offered his assistance to ensure fair prescription pricing.
Kennedy Jr. remarked during the signing that while Sanders has long advocated for this issue, Trump is fulfilling his commitments to voters. The two have previously clashed over the influence of pharmaceutical donations on political corruption.
