An Eye-Catching 475 NC CSE Activists Storm the Capitol to Fight Against Harmful Prescription Drug Formularies

Prior Authorization, “limits choice and hurts research…” — CSE President, Paul Beckner as quoted in the Raleigh News and Observer

Raleigh, NC – North Carolina Citizens for a Sound Economy (NC CSE) held its second annual North Carolina CSE Day at the Capitol in Raleigh on June 5. Over 475 dedicated NC CSE grassroots activists flooded the capitol to lobby their legislators on a number of core CSE issues including detrimental prescription drug formularies, tax increases, education and energy issues.


NC CSE activist with CSE Foundation educational booklet,
“What is Washington Doing To Your Medicare.”

CSE President Presents the Issue – Prior to storming the capitol to conduct one-on-one lobby visits with their legislators, CSE President, Paul Beckner gave a brief presentation on the detriments of Prior Authorization to all CSE Day participants. Discussing the negative consequences of legislation pertaining to prescription drug formularies, Beckner succinctly stated to the audience that measures to cap the costs on prescription drugs or create formularies to address the state’s budget shortfall, “limits choice and hurts research” for life-saving medicines.

Lobby Visits – All Activists were educated on the issue by CSE policy staff and given information on the ill effects of Prior Authorization on innovation, competition and choice. Each activist was given a NC CSE binder that contained a lobby sheet on the issue, talking points, sample letters to legislators and news media outlets, and CSE Foundation educational booklet, “What is Washington Doing to Your Medicare.”


CSE activist lobbies Senator Hugh Webster.

With the educational material in hand, activists converged on the capitol for good old-fashioned grassroots lobbying. Each activist met with his or her own legislators in order to discuss the prescription drug issue. Over 1,000 legislative visits occurred throughout the day. North Carolina CSE activists attempted to get legislators on record in opposition to unnecessary remedies for the state’s budget shortfall such as creating prescription drug formularies to limit the choice seniors have to life saving drugs.