Posted by Michael Wonder on 16 Apr 2019
Democrats feud over drug pricing policy, as progressives push pragmatists to be bolder
15 April 2019 - Democratic leadership and the party’s progressive flank are feuding over how best to lower drug prices.
In recent weeks, tensions between the two camps have escalated, and some fights have even spilled into public view. In a high-profile tug of war, lawmakers hoping to strike an accord with the Trump administration have been forced to confront a faction pressing Democrats to instead pursue a bolder progressive agenda — albeit one that the GOP-controlled Senate would surely ignore.
At a recent meeting of the Democrats’ most liberal members, several lawmakers scolded Wendell Primus, a veteran aide to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, for aggressively pitching pharmaceutical policy they said fell short of the speaker’s campaign promises.
