American Sustainable Business Council Launches Nationwide Campaign Of 128 U.S. Companies To Reform Health Care, Premieres New Documentary On Prescription Drug Pricing

NEW YORK, April 27, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- In an unprecedented effort aimed at reforming the nation's dysfunctional health care system, the American Sustainable Business Council launched the Business Leaders Transforming Healthcare campaign on Thursday, April 27, with 128 founding supporters such as Pittsburgh Crankshaft Inc., Easton Coach Company, Snowville Creamery and Box Latch Products. The companies that support the campaign are a mix of small, mid-sized and large businesses based in 30 U.S. states, representing sectors such as consumer products, finance, energy and real estate. As 11 of the founding supporters are business membership organizations, the estimated, extended size of the Business Leaders Transforming Healthcare network is about 10,000 supporting businesses when those members are included. The campaign will engage the American business community to push for a single payer system to lift the burden of rising health care costs off U.S. employers, who paid $660 billion for commercial health insurance in 2015. That figure is expected to rise to $1 trillion by 2023.

In addition to launching the campaign, Richard Master, founder and CEO of MCS Industries, the nation's leading supplier of picture frames and decorative mirrors and a founding member of the Business Leaders Transforming Healthcare campaign, will premiere a new documentary film "Big Pharma…Market Failure," at the Paley Center for Media on April 27. The film highlights the huge profits that the pharmaceutical industry is making at the expense of sick Americans, and how the high prices of health care and drugs are making American companies less competitive.

"I'm proud to help lead this campaign, and I'm confident that bringing common-sense, business-tested solutions to this crisis will bring results. There is no reason why American families are spending thousands more on specialty drugs than European families are, and yet, as this documentary shows, it's happening because of the stranglehold 'Big Pharma' has on U.S. Congress and as a result our country. This must be stopped, and the business community will be a driving force to create change," said Master, who is the executive producer of the film.

All supporters of the campaign believe that a single payer health care system, which is what the vast majority of the industrialized world embraces, will deliver significant cost-savings, in large part by eliminating the wasteful practices of the insurance industry that are designed for financial advantages. In addition to pushing for single payer, the campaign will push for common sense reforms to the health care industry, including an evidence-based formulary and negotiating the price of drugs at the national level, transparency throughout the system and evidence-based decision making.

"I hear from fellow business people all the time how difficult it is to operate with the constant rising costs of health care. Congress is not helping us. We have to act now, and we have to use our power as a group to force change. Our economy, businesses and working families can't afford otherwise," said David Levine, co-founder and CEO of the American Sustainable Business Council.

Business Leaders Transforming Healthcare will call on Congress to change the law that prohibits Medicare from negotiating the price of drugs, which would reduce the cost of prescriptions and hospital- and doctor-administered drugs. The projected savings of this plan alone is $150 billion.

"Big Pharma…Market Failure," a cornerstone of the new campaign, makes the case for why changes need to be made in the health care system, and how the pharmaceutical drug companies deliberately obfuscate the process to fleece both consumers and companies.

"You're going to watch this documentary and you're going to get angry. You should be angry," said Vincent Mondillo, director of the film. "The pharmaceutical industry has made billions profiting off sick and vulnerable people, and they're making it impossible for American companies to compete on a global scale. Take your anger and channel it to action. Support a single payer health care system, and join Business Leaders Transforming Healthcare."

"Big Pharma…Market Failure" is the second documentary produced by this team for the Unfinished Business Foundation, an educational foundation focused on issues related to U.S. health care. "Fix It: Healthcare At The Tipping Point" debuted in 2016 and is available at www.fixithealthcare.com for viewing.

To learn more about the campaign and documentary, visit www.BLTH.org.

About the American Sustainable Business Council (ASBC)
ASBC is a business advocacy organization committed to advancing market solutions and policies that support a vibrant, just and sustainable economy. Founded in 2009, ASBC and its organizational members represent more than 250,000 businesses across the United States. ASBC informs and engages business leaders, while educating policy makers and the media about the need and opportunities for a sustainable economy. Visit www.asbcouncil.org to learn more.

SOURCE American Sustainable Business Council

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