Kyrsten Sinema Is Doing Big Pharma’s Bidding
Kyrsten Sinema could block Democrats’ drug pricing negotiation plan — which may be why pharmaceutical interests are donating big money to her.
Senator Kyrsten Sinema speaking with attendees at the 2019 Update from Capitol Hill, hosted by the Arizona Chamber of Commerce & Industry, at the Arizona Biltmore resort in Phoenix, Arizona. (Gage Skidmore / Flickr)
Pharmaceutical interests have been flooding in donations to Senator Kyrsten Sinema, D-AZ, who has emerged as the chief roadblock to Democrats’ plan to allow Medicare to negotiate lower drug prices.
Between July and September, Sinema raised at least $100,000 from the pharmaceutical industry and donors at a private equity firm in the business of outsourcing pharmaceutical research and development, according to her campaign finance report filed Friday.
While Sinema previously campaigned on lowering drug prices, Politico reported last month that Sinema had informed President Joe Biden that she opposes the party’s signature drug pricing initiative, which would finally allow Medicare to use its bulk purchasing power to lower prices.
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