0:00:01.119,0:00:02.998
Every day in this country,

0:00:03.022,0:00:05.996
families are forced to make[br]impossible choices

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when it comes to their health care.

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Like Kimberly, who said,

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"There was times I had to choose[br]between my food and my pills.

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It wasn't luxury stuff,[br]because I didn't make that much.

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It was like, 'Can I get[br]shampoo or conditioner?'

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Things you take for granted."

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And Debbie, who said,

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"You put your medicine in one hand,

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your living costs in the other.

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OK. Well, what am I going to do?

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Am I going to get my medicine

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or am I going to pay my bills?

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Well, I can't live without my medicine,

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but I can't live if I don't pay my bills."

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Ten thousand people die[br]every month in this country

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because they don't take[br]the medicine that they need.

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More people die[br]from not taking medications

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than opioid overdoses[br]and car accidents combined.

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But you can't take medicine[br]if you can't afford it.

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Today, the average household[br]spends 3,000 dollars a year

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on medications.

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About a third of folks who are uninsured

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said that they stopped[br]taking medicine as prescribed

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because of cost.

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Even folks with insurance,

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if they make under 35,000 dollars a year,

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half of them report[br]skipping the medications

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if their insurance doesn't cover it.

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So there are 10 million adults[br]like Kimberly and like Debbie

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who are forced to make[br]impossible choices every day.

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We all know that prescription[br]drug prices are too high.

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And our health care system,

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that makes some folks uninsured[br]and other folks underinsured,

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doesn't prioritize[br]people who need access now

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and need medications now.

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Ten million -- it's a big number,

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but it's also a solvable number,

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because there's also 10 billion dollars

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of perfectly good unused medication

0:02:11.337,0:02:12.733
that goes to waste.

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So this is an injustice on two sides:

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people not getting the medicine[br]that they need to survive and to thrive,

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and that very same medication[br]being sent to a medical waste incinerator

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to be destroyed.

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This waste is unconscionable,[br]but it also offers an opportunity.

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I started SIRUM,

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a not-for-profit technology company,[br]with my cofounders Adam and George,

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to turn discarded medications[br]into a lifeline,

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just like the medications[br]in this warehouse.

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We may not be able to fix

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all the ways in which[br]our health care system is failing us,

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but we can fix this one.

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Medications come from manufacturers[br]and wholesalers who have safety stock,

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and when it's short-dated,[br]they destroy it.

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It also comes from health care facilities

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like hospitals, pharmacies[br]and nursing homes,

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who end up with surplus[br]when a patient stops taking medication

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or when they pass away.

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We can use this untapped[br]source of medications

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to supply all 10 million people[br]who need medications.

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And we can do this today.

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SIRUM gets surplus medications

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by putting recycling bins into[br]these hundreds of facilities

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that have surplus.

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They fill the bin,[br]and when the box is full,

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SIRUM initiates a courier pickup[br]to pick up that medication,

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and we handle the shipping, the tracking,[br]the manifests and the tax receipt.

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Medicine donors want to donate[br]because it's actually cheaper and easier

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than the highly regulated[br]medicine destruction process.

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And there are strong tax incentives[br]to actually donate.

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We then deliver those donated medications[br]to people who need it.

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A new prescription comes in,

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and our platform matches that patient need[br]with the inventory that's available.

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Our platform then generates[br]a warehouse pick list,

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the medications are picked[br]and the prescriptions filled.

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We are building the 21st-century[br]pharmacy experience

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that low-income families deserve.

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Patients can register[br]in under five minutes

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and have access to[br]over 500 different medications,

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a stable list of medications[br]for everything from heart disease

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to mental health conditions,

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actually representing over 75 percent[br]of all prescriptions prescribed

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in the United States today.

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We also partner with a network of doctors,[br]nurses and case managers

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at community health centers[br]and free clinics

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that refer patients to the service.

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We make it as easy[br]for these health care providers

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to have a prescription filled[br]with donated medications

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as it is to send a prescription[br]to a local pharmacy.

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And patients can pick up medications[br]on-site at one of our partners

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or have medications delivered[br]directly to their home.

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By circumventing[br]the traditional supply chain,

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we're able to offer flat,[br]transparent pricing --

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about two dollars for a month's supply[br]of most medications.

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And that allows a predictable,[br]affordable price

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that folks can actually budget for.

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We've already supplied enough medication[br]for 150,000 people.

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But we can do more.

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Our goal is to reach one million people

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with approaching a billion dollars[br]of unused medicine

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in the next five years,

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scaling our program to 12 states.

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At this scale, we can actually cover[br]communities that are home

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to 40 percent of the 10 million people

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who lack consistent, affordable access.

0:06:07.715,0:06:11.315
Our direct service to one million people

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will drive price competition[br]for so many more.

0:06:14.840,0:06:18.923
Walmart launched one of the only[br]price innovations in pharmacy

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in 2006,

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by offering a limited list of medications

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for a flat fee of four dollars.

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This sparked incredible change.

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It sparked competitors[br]to offer other lists

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and price match guarantees.

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By targeting transparent,[br]affordable medications

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into these new states,

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we can actually drive[br]regional price competition

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that drives down the prices[br]for entire low-income communities.

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Our health care system is complex.

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It is daunting.

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It feels impossible to make headway.

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But we can completely[br]reimagine medicine access.

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By using surplus medications[br]as a beachhead to force change

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into this multibillion dollar industry,

0:07:11.901,0:07:15.920
we can create radical access[br]to medications

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based on a fundamental belief

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that people who live in one of[br]the wealthiest nations in the world

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can and should have access[br]to medicine that they need

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to survive and to thrive.

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I do not pretend to have[br]all of the answers

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to fix all of the problems[br]in our health care system.

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But getting medications[br]to the millions of people

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who need it to live a healthy life,

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saving medicine to save lives --

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that is something we can do today.

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Thank you.