Welcome to the Week in Review.
The Inflation Reduction Act Turns Two
The Inflation Reduction Act’s second anniversary marks a major milestone in the drug pricing landscape. For decades, skyrocketing drug prices have forced patients on Medicare to choose between medication and other necessities. Now, thanks to the Inflation Reduction Act, patients on Medicare are beginning to breathe easier. The $35 insulin copay cap, which went into effect in 2023, isn’t just a number – it represents peace of mind for patients like Steven Hadfield and Bob Parant, who have seen their monthly costs plummet from hundreds to just $35. Free recommended vaccines and the cap on out-of-pocket costs at around $3,500 annually are also delivering substantial relief to seniors like Judy Aiken and Ginny Boynton, who both have faced thousands of dollars in annual out-of-pocket costs for their medicines. And even more change is now on the horizon as the $2,000 annual cap on out-of-pocket costs is due to take effect in 2025 and the lower prices for the first ten negotiated drugs will come into effect in 2026. The announcement of the maximum fair prices for the first 10 drugs selected for price negotiation is due in the coming days and will potentially save nearly nine million people as much as thousands of dollars per month on just one prescription alone. These drugs — including cancer treatments, blood thinners, autoimmune disease treatments, and some diabetes drugs — accounted for $3.4 billion in out-of-pocket costs for patients on Medicare in 2022. The Inflation Reduction Act is a monumental step toward a future where every American can get the prescription drugs they need at prices they can afford and an important milestone to celebrate and to build on. — (USC, AARP, CAP, The White House
Court Watch: US v. Pharma
On Thursday, a federal judge in Ohio dismissed a legal challenge brought by the national U.S. Chamber of Commerce and a few regional Chambers of Commerce to stop successful implementation of Medicare negotiations. Judge Michael J. Newman stated that the case was thrown out because the lawsuit was filed in an improper venue, slamming the Chamber for “venue shopping” for a potentially friendly court, and found that other plaintiffs in the case lacked standing. This dismissal marked the seventh consecutive loss for the pharmaceutical industry and its allies who filed lawsuits in various district courts as part of an “industry wide strategy” to escalate these cases to the Supreme Court. P4AD’s David Mitchell, who takes Eliquis, one of the first 10 drugs selected for negotiation, set the record straight: “It’s US vs. Pharma and we are winning because the drug companies’ claims thus far have been found to lack merit on both substance and procedure. As they appeal, we will continue to fight.” — (Bloomberg Law, Politico, STAT, Reuters, P4AD)
Big Pharma Patent Gaming
Patients in the U.S. face exorbitant prices for blockbuster diabetes and weight loss drugs — like Ozempic, Wegovy, and Mounjaro — meanwhile residents in comparable nations see list prices that are significantly lower for these same medications. The reason? Barriers to both drug price negotiation and generic competition. While most high-income countries have a variety of mechanisms to negotiate lower drug costs, residents in the U.S. face substantially higher list prices in large part because pharmaceutical corporations have rigged the system in their favor. Drugmakers exploit our patent system as part of their business model to extend monopoly periods including on GLP-1 treatments. By filing frivolous patents, including on the delivery mechanisms used to inject these drugs, they can help delay generic competition. These anti-competitive tactics, employed by drugmakers including Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk, mirror the patent strategy used by the very same companies to extend monopoly periods on blockbuster insulin drugs. “Just thinking about how long those companies have kept patent protection for insulin, I would imagine they have pretty substantial legal effort going into preventing generic entry for those drugs,” Professor Stacie Dusetzina told Axios when discussing the lack of competition for this emerging class of drugs. As long as these shady practices that block competition are permitted by law, patients will continue to be forced to pay some of the highest drug prices in the world for brand-name drugs. — (KFF, Inside Health Policy, STAT, Axios)
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.
Welcome to the Week in Review.
PBM Showdown In The House
The House Committee on Oversight and Accountability continued its 32-month investigation into pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) with a hearing scrutinizing the middlemen’s shady practices that drive up prescription drug costs. Executives from the three largest PBMs which control 80 percent of the U.S. prescription drug market — OptumRx, ExpressScripts, and CVS Caremark — testified before legislators on the outsized role of PBMs and their anti-competitive tactics which steer patients toward their own pharmacies and prioritize higher-priced medicines. The opaque structure and secretive rebate contracts result in significant profits at the expense of patients in the U.S. who pay three to eight times more for brand-name drugs than residents in comparable nations. Prior to the hearing, the Committee released a staff report, based on over 140,000 pages of internal documents from the companies. They found more than 300 examples of the big three PBMs preferring medications that on average cost at least $500 more per claim than the lower-cost alternative medication they excluded on their formularies. With bipartisan PBM reform bills having cleared key congressional hurdles, the pressure is mounting to rein in these shadowy middlemen and deliver new savings to patients drowning in prescription costs. — (NBC News, The Wall Street Journal, House Oversight Committee, HealthCare Dive)
Drugs Corporations Rake In Profits
While patients struggle with soaring drug prices, the pharmaceutical industry continues to demonstrate robust financial health, as evidenced by the latest quarterly earnings reports. In Q2 of 2024, AstraZeneca reaped nearly $2 billion in profits, while Bristol Myers Squibb earned $1.68 billion, Novartis reported $3.25 billion, and Johnson & Johnson brought in $4.69 billion in profits respectively. All of these corporations have at least one of the drugs they manufacture selected for Medicare negotiation – a program they’re fighting tooth and nail to derail – even though the companies’ executives maintain that the program will have minimal impact on their bottom lines. We expect reports from Merck and Novo Nordisk in the coming weeks — the latter riding high on its wildly popular and overpriced diabetes and weight loss drugs. One thing is crystal clear: Big Pharma’s profit machine shows no signs of slowing and there is urgent need for the ongoing implementation of the drug price reforms in the Inflation Reduction Act to better insulate patients from drug industry greed.
Court Watch: US V. Pharma
Last week, the pharmaceutical industry’s fight to stop Medicare negotiation intensified as special interest groups filed over a dozen amicus briefs in support of lawsuits from AstraZeneca, Bristol Myers Squibb, and Johnson & Johnson. Over the last six years alone these special interest groups — including the Washington Legal Foundation, Manhattan Institute, Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO), and Alliance for Aging Research — have received nearly $4.8 million from the industry’s top trade association, the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA), which also filed a suit against the Medicare negotiation program. But while pharma is paying for expensive lawyers, patients are fighting back. Since the lawsuits were filed last year P4AD has signed onto seven amicus briefs led by Public Citizen and supported by AARP, Protect Our Care, Doctors for America, and Families USA, and continue to rally 10s of thousands of patients and allies via a petition urging pharmaceutical CEO’s to drop their lawsuits against the historic Medicare negotiation program. We continue to amplify patient voices in the courtroom to ensure the harm of sky-high drug prices is upfront and center inside and outside the courtroom. — (Accountable.US, FightPharma.org, Public Citizen)
In Case You Missed It
Gilead Sciences is facing backlash over its highly-effective HIV prevention drug, lenacapavir. Patient advocates rallied outside of the 25th International AIDS Conference in Munich this week to demand an end to Gilead’s pricing monopoly. The company’s life-saving HIV drug is priced at $42,250 per year, despite reports that the medicine could be produced for as little as $40 per person each year. Advocates are calling for global action to make this life-saving drug accessible to everyone who needs it.
Welcome to the Week in Review.
Drugmaker’s Mid-Year Money Grab
Between June 30th and July 5th, drug companies hiked the prices of 195 prescription drugs, with 50 percent of those increases exceeding the rate of inflation. According to our own analysis, prices raised on cancer drugs outpaced increases across other classes of medications, accounting for 22 percent of all increases. Examples of other price hikes include:Revlimid, a drug that treats multiple myeloma, had a price increase of $5,832, being hiked from $83,322 to $89,155 for a supply of 100 pills. MACI, a cell therapy that treats knee pain, saw an increase of $4,494 per treatment.“Pharma corporations have been getting away with these price hikes for the last two decades, so they’re continuing what they’ve always done: To try to maximize the price the public will pay,” P4AD’s Merith Basey told MM+M. Historically, drug companies hiked prices on essential medicines with impunity, forcing patients to pay three to eight times what other countries pay for the same brand-name drugs. The Inflation Reduction Act now offers some protections from Big Pharma price gouging for patients on Medicare as the law requires drug companies to pay rebates if they raise prices higher than the rate of inflation, potentially saving patients up to thousands of dollars per medication. Additionally, the Congressional Budget Office projects the provision will reduce the federal deficit by $63.2 billion over 10 years (2022-2031). We will continue to share our analysis of July price hikes and trends in the coming weeks. Watch this space for updates. — (MM+M, Inside Health Policy, The Hill, Commonwealth Fund, KFF)
Debunking Pharma’s Dual Narrative
On a quarterly earnings call this week, a Johnson & Johnson (J&J) executive shared that the final price offers received for J&J’s drugs being negotiated under the new Medicare negotiation program — Xarelto, Stelara, and Imbruvica — wouldn’t hurt the company’s sales projections through 2030. Novartis CEO Vas Narasimhan echoed a similar message to investors yesterday, sharing that a lower negotiated price for its heart failure drug, Entresto, “might be manageable” for the company. In February, AstraZeneca CEO Pascal Soriot described the ongoing negotiation process as “relatively encouraging” and in April, Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS) CEO Chris Boerner stated that the company can “more than compensate” for the impact of the Inflation Reduction Act. Meanwhile, all the aforementioned companies are suing to block implementation of the Medicare negotiation program. Over the last week, J&J, BMS, and AstraZeneca, all filed opening briefs with the U.S. Court of Appeals, challenging the rejections of their cases to stop the program. While these drugmakers continue to wield their massive financial resources to undermine the program in the courts , propagating fear about its supposed harm on innovation, industry executives are simultaneously assuring investors that lower negotiated prices will have minimal impact on their bottom line. — (Endpoints, Fierce Pharma, Endpoints, BioPharma Dive, Bloomberg Law, Fightpharma.org)
In Case You Missed It
Lawmakers on Capitol Hill are intensifying their investigations into the predatory practices of the drug industry and pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs). On Tuesday, Senate aides met with Novo Nordisk executives to discuss the company’s discontinuation of one of their long-acting insulin products, Levemir. Last year, Novo Nordisk announced price reductions on some of its older insulins, but before the price cuts were even able to take effect, the company announced it would be withdrawing Levemir from the market by the end of 2024. This decision sparked outrage among patients who depend on this widely-used, essential medicine and are now forced to find costly alternatives for their treatment. Next Tuesday, July 23rd, executives from three large PBMs — CVS Caremark, Express Scripts, and OptumRx — will testify before the House Oversight Committee at a hearing titled “The Role of Pharmacy Benefit Managers in Prescription Drug Markets Part III: Transparency and Accountability.”
Welcome to the Week in Review.
Bipartisan Patent Thicket Legislation Unanimously Clears The Senate
Marking an important victory for patients, yesterday the Senate unanimously passed the Affordable Prescriptions for Patients Act of 2023 (S. 150), a bipartisan bill aimed at curbing the drug industry’s use of patent thickets to extend monopolies, limit competition, and keep drug prices high. The bill, championed by Senators Cornyn and Blumenthal, addresses Big Pharma’s exploitation of the patent system by restricting the number of patents that can be asserted on biologic medicines. A 2023 report by Matrix Global Advisors found that patent thickets on just five drugs — Humira, Imbruvica, Eylea, Enbrel, and Opdivo — delayed competition and cost patients more than $16 billion. Yesterday’s win would not have been possible without patients, their families and allies. P4ADNow’s year-long campaign, launched in July 2023, resulted in over 27,000 letters and over 30,000 calls from patient advocates into Congressional offices who mobilized en masse to ensure the Senate’s passage of S.150 and who are continuing to work to secure the passage of other bipartisan bills to increase competition and make medicines more affordable. “Accessing the medications that I need, at the quantities that I need them, could become easier and more affordable if more competition was allowed to enter the market,” shared Jacquie Persson, a patient advocate from Waterloo, Iowa who struggles to afford the medication she needs to manage her Crohn’s disease. P4ADNow is calling for swift action from the House to continue this momentum and ensure S. 150 becomes law soon as possible to begin to deliver relief to Americans of all ages. — (P4ADNow, Inside Health Policy, First Word Pharma, Endpoints, pharmaphorum, Coalition For Affordable Prescription Drugs, Patientspushforcompetition.org)
FTC’s Scathing Report On PBMs
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued a 71-page bipartisan interim report following its two year investigation into the opaque practices of pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs). Findings from the report confirmed what patients long suspected: the highly consolidated PBM industry, intertwined with insurance companies and pharmacies, wields outsized influence over drug accessibility and pricing. The report reveals how PBMs’ secretive agreements with drug manufacturers incentivize higher list prices and restrict access to cheaper generics and biosimilars. With the three most dominant PBMs – CVS Caremark, Express Scripts and OptumRx – processing 80 percent of prescriptions filled in the U.S., the FTC is poised to take legal action against the companies for their anti-competitive practices. The scrutiny on PBMs will continue to intensify later this month as executives from the big three will testify before the House Oversight Committee on July 23. Reform of the PBM industry remains a top priority for P4AD and we will continue to press for a system that prioritizes patients. — (FTC, Scripps News, P4ADNow, New York Times, Forbes, Pharmaphorum, Healthcare Finance News, Axios)
Fact V. Pharma Fear Mongering
The Inflation Reduction Act maintains key incentives for research and development of small molecule drugs, despite fear mongering from pharmaceutical industry representatives. It was reported this week that Eli Lilly is acquiring Morphic Holding, a biotech company with a small molecule drug in Phase II trials, proving yet again the industry’s continued appetite for small-molecule drugs. In the nine months following the law’s passage, there was a surge in acquisitions of small molecule drugs compared to the preceding period and industry experts are projecting nearly 8 percent annual growth in global sales of small molecule drugs from 2022-2031, demonstrating continued confidence in the value proposition of this class of drug. — (STAT, Fierce Pharma, Endpoints, Brookings Institution, Precedence Research)
In Case You Missed It
Between June 30th and July 5th, pharmaceutical companies raised prices on 195 drugs – 50 percent of which were raised higher than the rate of inflation. Watch this space as P4AD dives deeper into the drug industry’s egregious price hikes and trends throughout the month.
P4ADNow Applauds Unanimous Senate Passage Of Bill To Curb Patent Thicketing, Urges Swift House Action To Lower Drug Prices
Affordable Prescriptions for Patients Act of 2023 Will Increase Competition And Drive Down Prices Of Rx Drugs For All Americans
WASHINGTON, D.C. — In a major step forward for patients and consumers, the U.S. Senate has unanimously passed the Affordable Prescriptions for Patients Act of 2023 (S-150), to curb abuses of the patent system by tackling Big Pharma’s patent thicketing of biologics to increase competition in the drug market and lower prescription drug prices for millions of Americans of all ages.
Patients For Affordable Drugs Now (P4ADNow) hailed the unanimous Senate passage of S-150 as significant progress toward ensuring all Americans can access the drugs they need at prices they can afford. The organization launched its push for competition to lower drug prices in July 2023 by uplifting the voices of thousands of patients who are calling for reforms from Congress to curb drug companies patent abuses that extend their monopolies to block generic and biosimilar competition.
“Today’s Senate action is another important victory for patients that can pave the way for House action and full Congressional passage of this bipartisan bill this year,”said Merith Basey, Executive Director of Patients For Affordable Drugs Now. “This bill begins to strike at the heart of Big Pharma’s patent abuses that have kept U.S. drug prices artificially high for far too long. The overwhelming bipartisan support for this reform through unanimous consent proves that when patients demand change, our legislators listen. We are grateful to the tireless advocacy from thousands of patients, their families, and allies as well asSenators Cornyn and Blumenthal for their leadership and Senators from both parties who stood against pharmaceutical industry pressure and voted to put patients first.”
“Today’s Senate action has brought us closer to tangible savings for all Americans at the pharmacy counter. And now our message to the House is clear: let’s finish the job. We are continuing to mobilize patient advocates to ensure S-150 becomes law. Americans pay the highest prices in the world for their medications and are counting on swift, decisive action by the House of Representatives to lower their drug costs.”
Today’s bipartisan victory in the Senate was only achieved because of patient advocates who shared their lived experiences, making it possible to reach policymakers in Washington. Patients sent over 27,000 letters and made over 30,000 calls to Congressional offices demanding legislators to pass a package of bills to rein in pharmaceutical patent abuses and ensure patients get the drugs they need at prices they can afford.
“Accessing the medications that I need, at the quantities that I need them, could become easier and more affordable if more competition was allowed to enter the market,” said Jacquie Persson, a patient advocate from Waterloo, Iowa who struggles to afford the medication she needs to manage her Crohn’s disease. “I wouldn’t have to ration or stress about prior authorization approvals if I had access to more affordable options with the same result.”
P4ADNow extends its gratitude to the lead sponsors and key supporters of this crucial legislation, including Senators Cornyn and Blumenthal for their leadership on the Affordable Prescriptions for Patients Act of 2023. We also commend Senators Klobuchar and Grassley for their tireless efforts in pushing for drug pricing reform. Additionally, we recognize Senator Durbin for his continued advocacy and for holding the May Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Big Pharma’s anti-competitive tactics and Senator Graham for his vocal support during the hearing where he emphasized the need to bring these bills to the floor for a vote.
BACKGROUND
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Patients for Affordable Drugs NOW, is the only national, bipartisan patient advocacy organization focused exclusively on policies to lower drug prices. We empower and mobilize patients and allies, hold accountable those in power, and fight to shape and achieve system-changing policies that make prescription drugs affordable for all people in the United States. P4ADNOW does not accept funding from organizations that profit from the development or distribution of prescription drugs. To learn more visit PatientsForAffordableDrugsNOW.org.
Patients For Affordable Drugs Now Responds To Federal Trade Commission’s Scathing Report On Pharmacy Benefit Managers
FTC Confirms PBMs Inflate Drug Costs, Harm Patients
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Patients For Affordable Drugs Now (P4ADNow) issued the following statement in response to the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) bipartisan interim staff report on Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs):
“It will come as no surprise that the FTC’s report confirms what patients have long suspected: the largest PBMs wield significant control over which drugs are available for patients and at what price,” said Merith Basey, Executive Director of Patients For Affordable Drugs Now. “While PBMs were designed to benefit patients, in reality, they exploit their power to inflate drug costs. We commend the FTC for its report and ongoing investigation into these harmful practices.”
“Make no mistake, while PBM reform is urgently needed to bring true transparency to the PBM black box to lower drug prices for patients, Big Pharma should not be excluded from the narrative. Nearly 1 in 3 Americans cannot afford their prescription drugs largely due to drug companies’ abuses of the patent system and their ability to set and raise drug prices with impunity. P4ADNow remains committed to system-changing reforms that prioritize patients over Big Pharma and PBMs profits.”
Key findings from the report reveal:
P4ADNow supports reforms aimed at increasing transparency and curbing anti-competitive practices of PBMs, including key provisions in the Modernizing and Ensuring PBM Accountability Act (S. 2973) for its transparency requirements, the Better Mental Health Care, Lower-Cost Drugs, and Extenders Act (S 3430) for its reporting provisions, as well as the Lower Cost, More Transparency Act (H.R. 5378), aiming for reforms that prioritize patients and consumers.
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Patients for Affordable Drugs NOW, is the only national, bipartisan patient advocacy organization focused exclusively on policies to lower drug prices. We empower and mobilize patients and allies, hold accountable those in power, and fight to shape and achieve system-changing policies that make prescription drugs affordable for all people in the United States. P4ADNOW does not accept funding from organizations that profit from the development or distribution of prescription drugs. To learn more visit PatientsForAffordableDrugsNOW.org.
Welcome to the Week in Review.
Court Watch: Patients Score Fifth Legal Victory
A federal judge in Connecticut dealt a fifth consecutive blow to the pharmaceutical industry’s legal campaign to halt the Medicare negotiation program. Chief Judge Michael P. Shea ruled against Boehringer Ingelheim on Wednesday, rejecting the company’s claims and emphasizing the voluntary nature of drugmakers’ participation and their ability to remain profitable even with lower prices. Jardiance, Boehringer’s blockbuster diabetes and heart failure drug, is among the first 10 drugs selected for Medicare negotiation, and in 2023, the company raked in $8 billion in sales from Jardiance alone. A lower negotiated price for Jardiance could yield hundreds of dollars in monthly savings for patients like Joy in Michigan, who is forced to go without the drug because of its price. — (FightPharma.org, pharmaphorum, First Word Pharma, Boehringer Ingelheim)
Zeroing In On Patent Abuses
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) launched an investigation last week into Teva Pharmaceuticals over the company’s failure to remove dozens of “junk” patents on its inhalers. This probe is part of a broader and ongoing effort to end drug corporations’ exploitation of the patent system. Companies are accused of making minor tweaks to their medications for the purpose of keeping patents active and prolonging monopoly pricing power. The investigation follows the FTC’s November 2023 probe into several drug manufacturers’ improperly listed patents on medications that treat conditions like asthma, COPD, and diabetes. FTC Chair Lina Khan and Senator Dick Durbin criticized these patent abuses in an op-ed in STAT News this week and highlighted several bipartisan bills currently in Congress, backed by P4ADNOW, to address anti-competitive practices like pay-for-delay and patent thickets. These reforms recently gained renewed momentum as the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) rescoredthreebills included in this bipartisan package, projecting significantly higher savings and bolstering the case for their passage. — (The Washington Post, FTC, STAT News, PatientsPushForCompetition.org, Axios)
Expansion of Medicare Negotiation
Renewed calls to expand Medicare negotiation made headlines this week as President Joe Biden and Senator Bernie Sanders announced their shared aspirations to expand the program’s ability to negotiate drug prices directly with pharmaceutical companies. The new proposal aims to increase the number of drugs eligible for negotiation to 50 drugs per year, potentially including popular GLP-1s like Wegovy and Ozempic, and would be transformational in the continued fight for lower drug prices. These proposals would build upon hard-won victories for patients and could lead to billions in additional savings for both patients and taxpayers. — (Washington Examiner, Fierce Pharma, USA Today)
Eli Lilly’s Pricey Alzheimer’s Treatment
The Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) approval of Kisunla this week – one of only two drugs currently approved to treat Alzheimer’s disease – offers potential hope to patients affected by this devastating illness. Its launch price however is raising concerns over access. Eli Lilly priced the treatment at $32,000 per year — higher than Leqembi, the only other drug to treat the disease which costs $26,500 annually after Aduhelm was removed from the market this year. With an estimated 6.7 million people aged 65 or older living with Alzheimer’s disease, this price would place an impossible financial strain on Medicare. — (NBC, KFF, NIH)
In Case You Missed It
This week, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) launched MedicamentosBajoPrecio.gov, a Spanish-language version of their Lowerdrugcosts.gov resource that breaks down the drug price reforms in the Inflation Reduction Act.