David Reddy campaign in Kansas is a recipe for debate on remedies for high drug prices

By: Tim Carpenter
Kansas Reflector

Democratic incumbent supports price caps; GOP candidate wants to address generic drug market

TOPEKA — U.S. Representative Sharice Davids praises the Inflation Reduction Act as a boost to the U.S. economy and a long-overdue cap on drug prices.

Her opponent in the Nov. 5 election, Republican Prasanth Reddy, takes a different view. The doctor said the federal law Davids supports is a waste of taxpayer money and contains a flawed, government-mandated approach to containing drug costs.

Davids, the 3rd District Democrat who was first elected in 2018 and is seeking a fourth term, said she voted for the bill in part because it caps insulin costs for Medicare beneficiaries at $35 a month. It set a cap on Medicare beneficiaries' individual drug spending at $2,000 a year.

And, she said, the law allows Medicare to negotiate with drugmakers for lower prices on 10 drugs in 2026. That list included drugs to prevent and treat blood clots and to treat heart failure, diabetes and arthritis. The brand names included Eliquis, Jardiance, Xarelto, Januvia, Farxiga and Fiasp or NovoLog.

“From capping insulin costs to allowing Medicare to negotiate lower prescription drug prices, the legislation I supported in Congress will provide significant savings and help ensure our seniors have access to the affordable health care they need,” Davids said during a visit to a senior living facility in Olathe.

Reddy, the Republican candidate for Kansas City County, criticized the inflation control law, saying federal price caps could undermine medical research and development. He said the Democrats' strategy was flawed because not all drugs are created equal.

“As someone who has spent his life treating cancer patients and working in pharmaceuticals, I understand firsthand the importance of striking a balance between making life-saving drugs affordable and ensuring continued innovation in the medical field. I fully support efforts to make medicines more accessible to Americans, but we must be cautious when it comes to government price controls,” said Reddy, who earned his medical degree from the University of Kansas.

He said that while negotiations to lower drug costs by using the power of the Medicare or Medicaid programs are important, forcing the industry to cut prices through rigorous government intervention could harm patients in the long run.

“American pharmaceutical companies are world leaders when it comes to breakthrough drug development, and we need to ensure that continues,” Reddy said. “Ultimately, it's not just about today's drug prices, but also tomorrow's cures.”

He said Congress should expand production of generic drugs, including insulin. This would protect intellectual property rights, encourage innovation and give patients access to affordable generic drugs, he said.

In 2022, the U.S. Senate passed the Inflation Control Act by a vote of 51-50, with all Democrats voting in favor, all Republicans voting against, and Vice President Kamala Harris casting the deciding vote. U.S. Senators Jerry Moran and Roger Marshall, both Republicans from Kansas, voted against the bill.

The U.S. House of Representatives passed it by a vote of 220 to 207, with Davids and all Democrats in favor. All Republicans in the House opposed it, including Kansas Republicans Ron Estes, Jake LaTurner and Tracey Mann. President Joe Biden signed it into law.

During the Reddy-Davids campaign, Reddy's 2023 financial disclosure statement was discussed, which showed that he owns up to $651,000 worth of stock in pharmaceutical and laboratory research companies such as LabCorp. Davids' campaign team said it does not own any stock in pharmaceutical companies.

Reddy, a cancer doctor, said he has received $78,000 in consulting fees and travel, accommodation and meal expenses from pharmaceutical and medical device companies in the past.

Reddy's congressional campaign raised more than $400,000 from political lobbies working with pharmaceutical companies that oppose capping insulin prices for seniors.

“It's clear that Kansas residents cannot trust Prasanth Reddy to lower drug costs when he's being paid by the very companies that are raising them,” said Zac Donley, a spokesman for Davids. “While Reddy is closely aligned with big pharmaceutical companies, Sharice Davids is standing up to those big pharmaceutical companies and working to lower prescription drug prices for Kansas families.”

Reddy, a Lenexa-based physician, is board-certified in internal medicine, oncology and hematology. He has practiced medicine in academic settings, private practice and managed care. From 2021 to July 2023, he served as senior vice president and global head of enterprise oncology at Labcorp and also as vice president of medical affairs at Foundation Medicine.

The third candidate on the 3rd District ballot is Libertarian candidate Steve Roberts, who served on the Kansas State Board of Education from 2013 to 2021.