来源：《卫报》
原文刊登日期：2021年5月3日
本文作者是美国著名的联邦参议员伯尼桑德斯，有删减。
It is outrageous that more than 50 years after Medicare was enacted seniors still do not receive basic hearing, vision and dental coverage. Many seniors are unable to read a newspaper because they can’t afford eyeglasses, they can’t talk with their grandchildren because they can’t afford hearing aids and they have trouble eating because they can’t afford dentures.
令人愤慨的是，在联邦医疗保险实施50多年后，老年人仍然没有获得基本的听力、视力和牙科保险。许多老年人无法阅读报纸，因为他们买不起眼镜；无法与孙辈交谈，因为买不起助听器；吃饭困难，因为买不起假牙。
It is also time to acknowledge that we must lower Medicare eligibility for the millions of older workers who are in desperate need of healthcare.
现在也是承认我们必须降低数百万急需医疗保健的老年工人的医疗保险资格的时候了。
This pivotal moment in American history is the time for a Democratic president and a Democratic Congress to do what the American people want. We must expand Medicare benefits and lower the age of Medicare eligibility. Using our majority to take this step is the right thing to do for the American people.
这是美国历史上的关键时刻，是民主党总统和民主党国会做美国人民想做的事情的时候。我们必须扩大医疗保险福利，降低享受医疗保险的年龄。利用我们的多数派优势来采取这一步行动对美国人民来说是正确的。
These steps might seem expensive, and they are. But here is something amazing. We can pay for the entire cost of these additions to Medicare by allowing the program to negotiate the cost of prescription drugs.
这些步骤可能看起来很昂贵，事实也是如此。但这里有一些惊人的东西。我们可以通过允许Medicare就处方药的价格进行谈判来支付这些医疗保险增加的全部费用。
As incredible as it sounds the Medicare program is not allowed by law to negotiate with drug companies over the cost of medications seniors purchase. The lobbying power of the big drug companies means they are ripping off the government and charging the American people any price they want. Not only that. Because of the power of the pharmaceutical industry all Americans are forced to pay, by far, the highest prices in the world for prescription drugs. This absurdity must end.
令人难以置信的是，法律不允许Medicare与制药公司就老年人购买药物的价格进行谈判。大制药公司的游说力量意味着他们对美国政府漫天要价，向美国人民收取他们想要的任何价格。不仅如此。由于制药产业的力量，所有美国人都被迫支付世界上最高的处方药价格。这种荒谬必须结束。
Negotiating drug prices is what every other major country on earth does. The Veterans Administration does it. Only Medicare is prohibited from taking this obvious step.
谈判药品价格是世界上其他主要国家都在做的事情。退伍军人管理局就是这么做的。只有Medicare被禁止采取这一明显的步骤。
What we are fighting for now is the very definition of a win-win-win situation. Seniors pay lower prices for prescription drugs and receive hearing, vision and dental care. Millions more Americans become eligible to participate in the Medicare program. And we lower prescription drug costs for all Americans.
我们现在奋斗的正是一个三赢局面。老年人支付较低的处方药价格，并接受听力、视力和牙科保健。数以百万计的美国人有资格加入Medicare。我们为所有美国人降低处方药价格。
It’s almost insane to think that we would have to fight for these commonsense policies that are supported in overwhelming numbers by he American people. But it comes as no surprise that the pharmaceutical industry will use all of their power in Washington DC to try to stop them from taking place. From 1999 to 2018 drug companies spent $4.7bn lobbying the federal government.
想到我们将不得不为这些得到绝大多数美国人民支持的常识性政策而斗争，简直令人愤慨。但制药行业将动用其在华盛顿特区的全部权力，试图阻止这些事件的发生，这并不奇怪。从1999年到2018年，制药公司花费47亿美元游说联邦政府。
The pharmaceutical industry, the most powerful lobby in Washington, believes that their wealth and power can prevent Congress and the president from taking action to expand Medicare and lower prescription drug prices. Well, I disagree. I believe that in the days and weeks ahead, if all of us make our voices heard we can show how powerful the American people can be when we stand together and fight back. We will not allow the greed of the pharmaceutical industry to stand in the way of Americans getting healthcare and reasonably priced prescription drugs.
制药业，华盛顿最强大的游说团体，相信他们的财富和权力可以阻止国会和总统采取行动扩大Medicare和降低处方药价格。我不同意。我相信，在未来的几天和几周里，如果我们所有人都发出我们的声音，我们就能证明，当我们站在一起反击时，美国人民是多么强大。我们不会让制药业的贪婪阻碍美国人获得医疗保健和价格合理的处方药。