Welcome to the Week in Review.
Court Watch: US V. Pharma
A federal judge in New Jersey ruled against Novo Nordisk on Wednesday, rejecting all of the company’s arguments in its lawsuit aimed at stopping the historic Medicare negotiation program. Judge Zahid Quraishi observed that the constitutional challenges were “nearly identical” to arguments made in separate lawsuits by Bristol Myers Squibb and Johnson & Johnson — which he rejected in April. The court ruled against additional claims made by Novo Nordisk that Medicare negotiation violates the due process clause and separation of powers. Novo Nordisk’s diabetes drugs — Fiasp, Fiasp FlexTouch, Fiasp PenFill, NovoLog, NovoLog FlexPen, and NovoLog PenFill — are among the first 10 drugs selected for negotiation. This ruling marked the sixth consecutive loss in the pharmaceutical industry’s multi-million dollar legal campaign to stop the successful implementation of Medicare negotiation. However, the fight doesn’t stop here: several drugmakers are filing their appeals to recent rulings against their lawsuits to stop negotiations and the decisions in lawsuits brought by Merck and Novartis are still pending. To counter the drug industry’s relentless attacks on Medicare negotiation, P4AD, Public Citizen, Social Security Works, and Health Care Voices among others have now mobilized over 180,000 signatures for a petition demanding drug company executives urgently drop their lawsuits that directly oppose the interests of patients and taxpayers. — (Bloomberg Law, Endpoints, Inside Health Policy)
End Of Medicare Negotiation For First 10 Drugs
In a watershed moment for patients, negotiations between the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and drug manufacturers who make the first 10 drugs selected for Medicare negotiation ended yesterday, August 1st. The new negotiated maximum fair prices are set to be announced by September 1st. The drug manufacturers received initial price offers from CMS in February this year, and since then, all have participated in the negotiation process, which involved multiple rounds of offers and counteroffers. However, while drug industry executives are now telling investors that the impact of lower negotiated prices will not significantly hurt their bottom line, seven of the manufacturers are suing to stop Medicare negotiation, claiming the program will stifle innovation. A recent analysis from Bentley University found that, despite pharma’s fear mongering around the drug price law, it will have little to no impact on the number of new drug approvals and research and development (R&D) funding. Patients played a critical role in the passage of the landmark drug pricing law that authorized Medicare’s ability to negotiate lower drug prices and eagerly await potential savings of up to thousands of dollars per medication when negotiated prices take effect in 2026. — (The Hill, Medical Xpress, Fierce Biotech, The Nevadan)
In Case You Missed It
A national poll conducted by Lake Research Partners found overwhelming bipartisan support for pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) reforms. Eight in 10 voters support policies that would prevent PBMs from making profits based on drug prices in Medicare and over eight in 10 support ensuring that available rebates and other discounts are passed along to help seniors better afford their medicines. Reining in the shady practices of PBMs remains a top priority for P4AD and we’ll keep fighting to ensure they are operating in the best interest of patients and consumers.