Patients For Affordable Drugs Now Founder Sets The Record Straight On Key Incentives For Innovation In Historic Drug Price Law Ahead of Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee Hearing
David Mitchell, founder of Patients For Affordable Drug Now and a patient with a rare incurable cancer, urged Congress not to bend to drug industry scare tactics and fear-mongering and not to weaken provisions to lower prices in the Inflation Reduction Act. He made his remarks in an expansive 21-page statement submitted to the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health, ahead of tomorrow’s hearing focused on legislative proposals related to rare diseases.
Mitchell’s statement sets the record straight regarding the Inflation Reduction Act’s impact on small-molecule drugs. He refutes with real-world evidence, claims from the pharmaceutical industry that investments in small molecules would lag following the passage of the law and underscores the importance of safeguarding orphan drug incentives while preventing pharmaceutical industry abuse.
Drawing from his own experience as a rare disease patient, Mitchell highlights how the Inflation Reduction Act effectively addresses both innovation and affordability concerns. “I care deeply about innovation and new drug development. My life depends on it. Without innovation, I will die sooner than I hope to. That is just an unfortunate fact,” he wrote. “The Inflation Reduction Act restores balance to move us in the direction of fair prices and profits while still getting the innovation we need.”
David’s statement also highlights the stories of two patients, Sue from Wilmington, Delaware, and Cheryl from Louisville, Kentucky. Sue is living with a form of blood cancer and takes Imbruvica, which costs $18,000 a month. After insurance, she pays the first $8,000 in 2-month copays and then $1,000 a month thereafter. At 76 years old, Sue is working full-time to afford this medication, but because of the Inflation Reduction Act, she will save between $12,000-$14,000 this year with the out-of-pocket cap phasing in at the catastrophic level. Cheryl requires inhalers, like Trelegy, but because of the price, she often goes without until she has a bad episode. The $350 to $800 price tag per month presents a significant financial burden for Cheryl, who emphasized the absurdity of such costs for essential medication needed to breathe every day. Their experiences shed light on the urgent need for lower drug prices to ensure access to vital treatments for all patients.
Key highlights from the statement underscore the law’s profound impact on innovation and affordability:
- The Inflation Reduction Act strikes the right balance in incentivizing rare disease drug development while preventing the abuse of orphan drug status to extend higher prices indefinitely. David’s statement underscores the need to maintain incentives for true orphan drugs while curbing abuse within the system that drug companies take advantage of to protect big blockbuster profits.
- Contrary to industry fear-mongering, Mitchell referenced the Congressional Budget Office’s (CBO) assessment that the Inflation Reduction Act’s impact on new drug development would be minimal, with only two or three of foregone new drugs likely to represent true therapeutic advancements over 30 years. Mitchell’s statement underscores the resilience of investment in drug development despite industry resistance to policy reforms, with credit to the Inflation Reduction Act for preserving the primary means of rewarding innovation and ensuring profitability for drug companies–allowing drug companies to continue to set launch prices.
- Medicare negotiation will increase incentives for more innovative drugs and drug companies will still enjoy increased revenue and profit in the world’s most lucrative market for drugs. “The industry has plenty of money for innovation. In the wake of the Inflation Reduction Act passage, investors are upbeat,” wrote David. “Drug company stocks are doing fine. The industry is flush with cash and has great access to capital.”
You can find the full written statement HERE. David will also be available for interviews and to comment on tomorrow’s hearing. To schedule please reach out to Emma Sands at [email protected]
###