Latest News | Jan 3, 2025

The Year in Review in Prescription Drug Pricing

Over the last 12 months, our community of hundreds of thousands of patients and allies has taken action to protect the historic 2022 prescription drug law, debunk Big Pharma’s propaganda, and advocate for legislative solutions to curb patent abuses and increase lower-cost competition in the drug marketplace for everyone. Highlights from the year include:

Patient Advocates Celebrate Historic Drug Pricing Reforms

Throughout the year, the patient advocates at the heart of our work have been highlighting the savings brought by the drug price reforms in the Inflation Reduction Act:


Judy Aiken introduces President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris at an event focused on lowering drug prices on August 16, 2024.

Continued Push For Competition

Since the launch of our “Push for Competition to Lower Drug Prices” in July 2023, advancing bills that increase competition in the drug marketplace has continued to be at the forefront of our work to lower drug prices. The campaign highlights several bipartisan legislative solutions to Big Pharma’s anti-competitive practices and has used digital ads, an online advocacy hub, videos, and letters to urge Congress to pass bills to promote generic and biosimilar competition. Since the campaign launch our community has:

Additionally, David Mitchell, P4ADNow’s President and Founder, voiced strong support for the package of bills during his testimony before the Senate Finance Committee, urging them to rein in pharma’s patent abuses and allow for timely entry of lower-cost competition. 

Disappointingly at the end of the year, despite strong bipartisan support and an opportunity to save taxpayers billions of dollars, critical measures that our community has been pushing for were eventually left out of the final version of the end-of-year spending bill, including S. 150, the Affordable Prescriptions For Patients Act of 2023 which passed the Senate unanimously in June, Q1/Q2, a provision from the Lower Costs, More Transparency Act, and S. 2973, the Modernizing and Ensuring PBM Accountability Act. While this decision angered Americans who struggle to afford their drugs, our community remains committed to mobilizing patients, holding lawmakers accountable, and fighting for system-changing reforms to lower drug prices in the next Congress.


P4ADNow patient advocates after sharing their personal stories with their legislators to urge them to pass the bipartisan package of competition bills (From Left: Jackie Trapp, Sue Lee, Karolina Chorvath, Gaile DeVore, and Janet Kerrigan)

Court Watch: US v. Pharma

In response to the pharmaceutical industry’s multi-million dollar campaign to block the Medicare Negotiation Program, P4AD has taken decisive action to defend this historic victory that patients fought hard to achieve. We mounted a powerful defense through the US vs. Pharma campaign leveraging the voices of patients who stand to benefit most from this reform. To date, we’ve filed two amicusbriefs highlighting the transformative benefits of the program, countering Big Pharma’s misinformation about access and innovation, and exposing the 20 years during which Big Pharma blocked Medicare’s ability to negotiate prices. As part of our campaign, we launched FightPharma.org and its Spanish language counterpart, Luchacontrapharma.org, to galvanize public pressure and mobilize patients across the country. Alongside our partners, Public Citizen, Social Security Works, and Health Care Voices, we continued to increase support for a petition to pressure pharma CEOs to withdraw their lawsuits to stop the program – which to date has been signed by over 200,000 people. Our micro-influencer campaign, targeted toward a younger audience, has gained significant traction on social media with 41 posts (in English and Spanish) generating over 904,000 views. Several posts were picked up and shared by the social impact company NowThis. While eight out of nine lawsuits were ruled in favor of patients, the fight is far from over as drug companies continue to appeal these rulings and aim to escalate these cases to the Supreme Court. P4AD remains committed to defending the integrity of the Medicare Negotiation Program, and ensuring that patients continue to be at the heart of this critical reform.

P4AD’s campaign microsite for US v. Pharma: Fighting To Protect Medicare Negotiation launched on April 5, 2024.

Expanding Our Spanish Language Program and Price Hike Report

In 2024, P4AD significantly expanded outreach within Latino and Black patient communities across the country. In the District of Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia area, we launched a series of bike share ads in Spanish to encourage Spanish speakers to share their experiences with high drug prices. Through a strategic partnership with El Tiempo Latino, we developed the “Medicinas Vitales, No Lujos” public education campaign to increase awareness of this issue, which disproportionately harms Latinos, as well as draw attention to the lawsuits against Medicare negotiation. In collaboration with Telemundo 62, we created the “Tu Voz Cuenta” campaign to inspire Latinos to share their stories and advocate for further action. Additionally, we expanded our existing campaigns – Push for Competition to Lower Drug Prices and US v. Pharma – into Spanish to broaden their impact. We also released a report, covered by NBC, exposing Big Pharma’s price hikes in 2024 and their disproportionate harm to Black and Latino patients. The analysis focused on price increases of five cancer medications, such as those used to treat multiple myeloma, breast cancer, and prostate cancer, diseases that are disproportionately diagnosed among these communities. We will continue to work to elevate stories of patients from Black and Latino and push for reforms that improve both the financial and health outcomes of those most harmed by Big Pharma’s greed. 


P4AD’s Mini-Report on drug price hikes and its impact on Black And Latino communities released on September 24, 2024.

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Critical Bipartisan Measures Cut Would Have Lowered Drug Prices For Americans And Saved Taxpayers Billions


WASHINGTON, D.C. — Patients For Affordable Drugs Now expresses deep disappointment and frustration over the failure to include key drug pricing reforms in the end-of-year continuing resolution (CR) despite strong bipartisan support. These vital reforms became collateral damage when they were cut from the proposed package that was released earlier in the week, as political maneuvering and powerful outside interests took priority over patient needs.

In the past two days, patients have sent over 1,000 letters urging House Republicans to uphold their commitment to the American people and prioritize the drug pricing reforms in the original CR package.

“These critical reforms had strong bipartisan support, saved taxpayers billions of dollars, and would have delivered real relief for patients,” said Merith Basey, Executive Director of Patients For Affordable Drugs Now. “Leaving these bills out of the end-of-year package means that Americans will continue to pay the highest drug prices in the world. Regrettably, politics and powerful outside interests took precedence over the needs of patients.

“But this setback will not deter us. P4ADNow will continue to mobilize patients, hold lawmakers accountable, and fight for system-changing reforms that will lower drug prices for all. Lawmakers have a chance to make this right during the next Congress and the incoming Trump Administration by passing these bills into law. Nine out of 10 Americans demand it.”

The reforms cut from the CR include:

“This decision feels like a betrayal to millions of patients who spoke out, hoping to rein in an industry that has always put profits first,” said Jacquie Persson, a patient advocate from Cedar Falls, Iowa who struggles to afford the medication for her Crohn’s disease. “It’s disheartening to see industry interests prioritized over the well-being of people once again. We won’t stop fighting until Big Pharma is held accountable and patients can access the affordable, life-saving medications they need and deserve.”

The exclusion of these measures means the next opportunity to pass them will be during the next Congress – a timeline that delays relief for millions of people with high drug costs. Despite this setback, P4ADNow is committed to its mission to lower drug prices for patients and continuing its advocacy:

Partnering with allies to hold lawmakers accountable and keep drug pricing reform at the forefront of legislative priorities.

Mobilizing patient advocates to demand the passage of these reforms during the next Congress.

Building on the momentum of 42,000 letters and 31,000 calls to Congress, urging bipartisan action on these bills.

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Patients For Affordable Drugs Now, is the only national, 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 is bipartisan and 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.

End-Of-Year Spending Bill And Key Drug Price Reforms Still In Flux

In a turbulent week of negotiations, House leadership continues to grapple with internal divisions and external political pressures ahead of tonight’s midnight government funding deadline. The initial continuing resolution (CR) package, released Tuesday, included bipartisan drug pricing measures that would have saved taxpayers billions and lowered drug costs for Americans. But by Thursday night, a pared-down CR – stripped of drug price reforms and many other health care provisions – was brought forward and failed decisively on the House floor. As of 3 P.M. Friday, the most recent bill proposal also excluded the drug price reform bills that the P4ADNow community has been championing for the last 18 months. Those reforms include: 

As of this newsletter, negotiations remain in flux, and it’s still unclear when a vote will happen. While the outcome remains uncertain, P4ADNow is keeping an eye on developments and is hopeful that Congress will still deliver long-overdue relief for patients struggling with the high cost of prescription drugs. No matter what happens, we will continue mobilizing our community of patients and allies, and holding lawmakers accountable to ensure these reforms and others like them become a reality as soon as possible. Millions of Americans are counting on it. 

Court Watch: US V. Pharma

Patients For Affordable Drugs filed an amicus brief yesterday in the Third Circuit Court of Appeals, defending Medicare’s authority to negotiate lower drug prices in a case filed by Novo Nordisk, one of the Big Three insulin manufacturers that is challenging the program. This case is part of a coordinated, multimillion-dollar legal campaign by Big Pharma and its allies to overturn the historic program and regain its complete control over drug pricing. The amicus brief, P4AD’s second as part of our US v. Pharma campaign, highlights the transformative benefits of the Medicare Negotiation Program and counters Big Pharma’s misinformation surrounding access to and innovation of essential medicines. Further, it exposes the corrupt origins of the “non-interference” clause inserted into the Medicare Modernization Act of 2003 via pharmaceutical industry influence in order to block Medicare from negotiating drug prices. By overturning this loophole the program will lower costs on up to 60 of the most expensive and most used drugs on Medicare, weaken pharma’s monopoly power, and ensure billions in savings for American taxpayers. Patient advocate, Bob Parant, has lived with type 1 diabetes for over 50 years and shared his experience which was included in the amicus brief: that despite having better results using Novolog, Bob had to switch to a less effective medication because of the price Novo Nordisk was demanding. Lower negotiated prices will ensure that patients like Bob, who’ve had to make these difficult decisions, can access their life-sustaining medicine at an affordable price. — (P4AD, Georgetown Litigation Tracker, CBO)

ICYMI

Yesterday, Senators Hickenlooper, Welch, and Collins introduced the “Skinny Labels, Big Savings Act,” a bipartisan reform that would codify skinny labels, a critical pathway for market entry of generic medications, and increase savings for patients and taxpayers. P4ADNow is proud to support this bipartisan reform that reserves a crucial pathway for ensuring patients can continue to access life-saving generic medicines at prices they can afford. 

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Patient Advocacy Drives Progress On Patent Reform, Generic Drug Access, And PBM Accountability To Lower Drug Prices For Patients


WASHINGTON, D.C. — Patients For Affordable Drugs Now (P4ADNow) is pleased to see critical drug pricing reforms included in the health care package attached to the continuing resolution (CR) released today. These measures are a significant step towards lowering prescription drug prices for millions of Americans by tackling Big Pharma’s patent abuses, enabling generic competition, and reforming the drug supply chain. 
 
The CR includes:
– S.150, the Affordable Prescriptions for Patients Act: which limits the number of patents pharmaceutical companies can assert on biologics, clearing the path for earlier entry of lower-cost biosimilars into the market. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates this reform could save taxpayers $1.8 billion over 10 years.
– Q1/Q2, a provision of the Lower Costs, More Transparency Act: addresses a critical barrier to generic drug approvals by requiring the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to provide clearer guidance on ingredient differences, saving generic manufacturers time and money in bringing affordable alternatives to market. The CBO estimates this reform would save taxpayers $871 million over 10 years.
– S.2973, the Modernizing and Ensuring PBM Accountability Act: would delink pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) revenue from drug prices in Medicare Part D, curbing incentives that lead PBMs to steer patients toward more expensive prescription drugs, and would require PBMs to report on drug pricing and other information to Part D plan sponsors.

“The inclusion of these bills is an important step toward reforming the whole U.S. drug price system which has been rigged against patients. These reforms are critical to further lowering drug prices for all and signal that Congress listened to patients and an overwhelming majority of Americans who have been calling for further action to address the root causes of high drug costs,” said Merith Basey, Executive Director of Patients For Affordable Drugs Now. “We commend the bipartisan leaders who championed these measures and the patients who continue to drive forward the change they deserve. Now, Congress must act swiftly to make these reforms law and deliver meaningful relief to those struggling to afford their medications.”

In July 2023, P4ADNow launched the “Push for Competition to Lower Drug Prices” campaign, which highlighted the harmful impact of Big Pharma’s anti-competitive practices. The campaign included digital ads, an online advocacy hub, as well as videos urging Congress to pass bipartisan bills, including S. 150 and Q1/Q2, to promote generic and biosimilar competition. Over the last nearly 18 months, key efforts by patients and advocates have included:
– Nearly 42,000 letters were sent to Congress urging action on these bipartisan patent reform bills. In the final week leading up to the CR’s passage, over 4,500 letters were sent to push for the inclusion of S.150. 
– Since the launch of the campaign, advocates have made more than 31,000 calls to Congressional offices to encourage the passage of these reforms.
– Nine patient advocates have flown to Washington, D.C. to meet directly with lawmakers, sharing their struggles with high drug prices and urging them to act on these bills.
– Patients have shared their stories through interviews, press conferences, on Hill panels, and in op-eds, and in news outlets nationwide.
– P4ADNow sent multiple letters, alongside allies like AARP, CSRxP, The ERISA Industry Committee, The National MS Society, and Purchaser Business Group on Health, in support of S. 150 and other reform bills.

Additionally, in May, David Mitchell, Founder and President of P4ADNow and himself a patient with an incurable rare cancer, testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee. His testimony emphasized how Big Pharma’s anti-competitive practices harm patients and taxpayers, and urged Congress to act on a bipartisan package of reforms – including some provisions included today. These changes would realign incentives to spur true innovation while ensuring timely market entry for generics and biosimilars to lower prices.

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Patients For Affordable Drugs Now, is the only national, 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 is bipartisan and 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.

Pharma’s Excessive Prices Hikes

The new report from the Institute for Clinical and Economic Review (ICER) on price increases of prescription drugs in the U.S. established that five of the top 10 drugs with price hikes above the rate of inflation — Biktarvy, Darzalex, Entresto, Cabometyx, and Xeljanz — lacked significant clinical evidence to justify the price increases. These unjustified hikes drove $815 million in additional costs for patients and taxpayers in 2023, boosting pharmaceutical industry profits while burdening those who depend on these essential medicines. Notably, Entresto is among the first 10 drugs selected for Medicare negotiation, a critical step in addressing price gouging under the Inflation Reduction Act. Earlier this year, P4AD highlighted similar practices with regard to cancer drugs in a mini report, showing how pharma price hikes disproportionately harm Black and Latino patients. While Big Pharma’s price gouging has begun to be reined in by the Inflation Reduction Act, we need to continue to fight for systemic reforms to ensure that all patients can access the medicines they need at prices they can afford. — (ICER, STAT, NBC News, P4AD)

Inhaler Pricing Schemes

GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) continues to face backlash from patients and legislators over its decision last year to discontinue its popular Flovent asthma inhaler, used widely by children living with asthma, and replace it with a more costly generic version that lacks coverage from many insurers. Senator Elizabeth Warren sent another letter to GSK this week, raising concerns about the decision and highlighting findings from Johns Hopkins University that the discontinuation of Flovent HFA cost Medicaid programs nearly $1 billion in 2024. This move by GSK has left families scrambling to find affordable inhaler alternatives and disproportionately harms Black and Latino children who are diagnosed with asthma at higher rates. This blatant profiteering not only undermines patient access but also exacerbates health disparities, underscoring the urgent need for stronger oversight to hold pharmaceutical companies accountable and legislation to crack down on anti-competitive tactics. — (USA Today, Sierra Sun Times, Managed Healthcare Executive, US News)

Big Pharma’s Patent Abuses Cost Patients & Taxpayers

A new report from Public Citizen found that manufacturers of nine of the 10 drugs selected for negotiation by Medicare engaged in rampant anti-competitive tactics to block generic competition and artificially prolong monopoly periods. The report also highlighted that four of the selected drugs — Stelara, Xarelto, Januvia, and Enbrel — would likely have faced generic competition before negotiated prices went into effect, potentially saving Medicare up to $5.4 billion during that period — almost as much as the $6 billion of expected savings from negotiations in the first year. These inflated prices force patients to make impossible choices, like skipping doses or draining their savings, just to access the medicines they need. To achieve truly fair pricing, the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) must account for these anti-competitive tactics during the negotiation process and ensure the final prices reflect the harm caused by such abuses. — (Public Citizen, CMS)

ICYMI

P4ADNOW was disappointed by the United States Patent and Trademark Office’s (USPTO) decision to withdraw its proposed rule on “terminal disclaimer practice” to address drug manufacturers’ nonstatutory double patenting. This commonsense rule had the potential to curb the use of patent thickets, an abusive tactic used by the pharmaceutical industry to block competition and keep prices high for patients.

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Welcome to the Week in Review.

Patient Advocate Of The Year

P4AD proudly began a new tradition: our Patient Advocate of the Year Award. The award honors a patient advocate who has gone above and beyond in the fight for lower drug prices. This year’s recipient was Judy Aiken — a name that should be familiar to Week In Review readers and who was presented with the award yesterday in Washington, DC. Judy is a retired nurse from Maine who has been living with psoriatic arthritis and psoriasis for over four decades. She made headlines earlier this year when she introduced President Biden and Vice President Harris and shared her experience with high drug prices at an event celebrating Medicare’s first 10 new, lower negotiated prices. Judy also testified before the Senate Finance Committee this year to share how the Inflation Reduction Act’s annual $2,000 out-of-pocket cap would rein in the cost of her prescribed medications. Judy’s unwavering commitment to this cause and her willingness to share her personal story continues to help P4AD have a measurable impact. She inspires us all to keep up the fight. — (Portland Press Herald, The New York Times, Fierce Pharma)

EOY Health Care Package Negotiations

As Congress approaches a deadline to pass critical funding bills, negotiations over a health care package are intensifying, with new developments from both parties. Congressional Republicans provided an initial proposal that included provisions that would address the lack of transparency within the pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) industry and delink PBM compensation from list prices. In response, Democrats have put forward a counteroffer that builds on these PBM policies while adding additional drug pricing measures, including S.150, the Affordable Prescription for Patients Act. This bipartisan legislation, which passed the Senate unanimously, targets patent thickets on biologics to accelerate biosimilar competition, lowering costs for patients and potentially generating $1.8 billion in federal savings over 10 years. On Wednesday, P4ADNow, AARP, The ERISA Industry Committee, CSRxP, and The National MS Society sent a letter to House and Senate Leadership urging them to pass S.150 to lower drug costs and generate savings to offset other critical healthcare priorities. Another provision still on the table is Q1/Q2, which P4AD supports, which would expedite the approval process of generic drugs and generate $871 million in government savings over 10 years. These measures align with P4AD’s mission and would help rein in the shady practices of the industry middlemen – while also holding drug manufacturers accountable for their role in setting high list prices. — (STAT, Congressional Budget Office, DC Journal)

ICYMI

The Biden-Harris administration announced that Bluebird Bio and Vertex Pharmaceuticals, two drug makers with FDA-approved gene therapies for sickle cell disease (SCD), have agreed to participate in the Cell and Gene Therapy Access Model. This voluntary model will test outcome-based agreements that tie payments to whether these multi-million dollar therapies improve health outcomes for people living with SCD on Medicaid. Given that over half of the entire community of 100,000 people in the U.S. with SCD are on Medicaid, the model is part of the Administration’s broader effort to increase access to novel therapies and drive down prescription drug costs by making it easier for states to pay.

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Welcome to the Week in Review.

PREVAIL Act Narrowly Clears Senate Judiciary Committee

After several delays, members of the Senate Judiciary Committee voted to pass S. 2220, the PREVAIL Act, by a razor-thin bipartisan margin of 11 yays to 10 nays. Drawing concerns from patients and public health advocates alike, this patent bill would be detrimental if enacted into law and would weaken critical mechanisms to challenge potentially invalid patents and strengthen anti-competitive tactics wielded by drug manufacturers to block generic and biosimilar competition. The bill’s narrow committee vote, coupled with significant reservations from Senators on both sides of the aisle, suggests limited support for it to advance to the Senate floor. “While amendments made to the legislation in committee attempt to resolve concerns, they barely scratch the surface of fixing the bill’s fundamental flaws,” said P4ADNow Executive Director Merith Basey in a statement issued yesterday. “We urge the full Senate to reject PREVAIL and instead focus on the bipartisan patent reform policies currently in Congress that will increase competition and lower drug prices for all Americans.” — (Inside Health Policy,  IP Watchdog, P4ADNow, Axios)

Continued Push For Competition

With just weeks left in the 118th Congress, momentum continues to build towards advancing the bipartisan Affordable Prescriptions for Patients Act of 2023 (S. 150), aimed at addressing one of Big Pharma’s key abuses of the patent system. The bill, which unanimously passed the Senate in July, would limit the number of patents a pharmaceutical company can assert on biologic drugs, curbing patent thicketing and bolstering the timely entry of biosimilars into the market. According to the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), this legislation is projected to generate $1.8 billion in savings over ten years, which could serve as a timely bipartisan offset for other critical, must-pass health care priorities as lawmakers consider an end-of-year legislative package. We urge members in the House to continue advancing this cost saving measure as millions of patients nationwide urgently need relief from high drug prices. — (Politico, Axios, Congressional Budget Office)

President-Elect Trump 2025 Appointments

President-Elect Donald Trump has tapped Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to head the Department of Human & Health Services (HHS) and Dr. Mehmet Oz as administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) – both unconventional appointments that introduce a level of uncertainty in the future of drug pricing policy. At P4ADNow, we’re committed to working with the new administration to lower prescription drug prices to improve the financial well-being and health of all Americans. Despite nine in 10 American voters believing that lowering drug prices should be an important or top priority of elected officials, the incoming administration has yet to outline concrete steps to address this issue. Our focus however remains the same: we will work with any elected official who champions efforts to lower drug prices for patients, hold accountable those who prioritize Big Pharma’s interests over the American people, and emphasize to the incoming administration that lowering drug prices is essential to making America healthy again. — (Becker’s Hospital Review, Reuters)

ICYMI

Listen to P4AD’s Merith Basey on WPFW-FM discuss how Black and Latino patients are disproportionately harmed by high drug prices, and face more difficulty affording their medicines. Given that Black and Latino patients are more likely to be affected by chronic conditions, including diabetes, cancer, and heart disease, Big Pharma’s relentless price hikes exacerbate existing health disparities within these communities and lead to patients disproportionally rationing or forgoing their essential medicines altogether. 

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P4ADNow Will Press To Keep The PREVAIL Act, Which Narrowly Cleared Committee, From A Vote On The Senate Floor


WASHINGTON, D.C. — Patients For Affordable Drugs Now is disappointed to see the Senate Judiciary Committee advance a patent bill that would harm patients: S. 2220 the PREVAIL Act. If enacted into law, the bill would weaken mechanisms to challenge potentially invalid patents and undermine existing checks on the pharmaceutical industry’s power, further limiting competition from less expensive generics and biosimilars. This would result in higher drug prices, putting more essential medications out of reach for patients nationwide.
 
The bill cleared the Committee on a razor-thin vote of 11 to 10, with several senators who supported its passage expressing significant reservations about the potential negative impact on patients and drug prices. Several Yes votes also indicated they would be uncomfortable supporting the bill in its current form if it was brought to the floor. 
 
Merith Basey, Executive Director of Patients For Affordable Drugs Now released the following statement: 
 
“Today’s markup of the PREVAIL Act is a step backward for patients. At a time when three in ten Americans struggle to afford their prescribed medications and over 20 percent have fallen into debt or bankruptcy due to healthcare costs, this bill would extend drug monopolies, stifle competition from cheaper generic and biosimilar drugs, and ultimately keep drug prices artificially high for millions of Americans.


“While amendments made to the legislation in committee attempt to resolve concerns, they barely scratch the surface of fixing the bill’s fundamental flaws. We believe that is why several Senators who voted yes today did not commit to supporting the bill on the Senate floor.


“The Inflation Reduction Act lowered drug prices for millions of Americans. PREVAIL could undermine those gains and take us in the opposite direction keeping drug prices high, and enabling drug companies to raise them further. We urge the full Senate to reject PREVAIL and instead focus on the bipartisan patent reform policies currently in Congress that will increase competition and lower drug prices for all Americans.”
 
BACKGROUND

The Senate has already unanimously passed an amended version of S. 150. These Senate bills are estimated to save taxpayers $4.5 billion over the next 10 years.

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Patients for Affordable Drugs Now, is the only national, 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 is bipartisan and does not accept funding from organizations that profit from the development or distribution of prescription drugs. To learn more visit PatientsForAffordableDrugsNOW.org.