STATEMENT: Patients For Affordable Drugs Now Applauds Biden Administration’s Plan To Lower Drug Prices

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The following statement was issued by David Mitchell, a cancer patient and founder of Patients For Affordable Drugs Now, in response to the release today of the Biden administration’s Comprehensive Plan for Addressing High Drug Prices: A Report in Response to the Executive Order on Competition in the American Economy:

“The plan issued today by the Biden administration is bold, comprehensive, and exciting. It will spur innovation and research into new treatments that patients want and need, and ensure that those new medicines are available at prices families and our nation can afford. It will improve the health and financial well-being of patients across the country. We look forward to working with the administration and Congress to implement its recommendations, including enacting legislation this year that will allow Medicare to negotiate lower prices on behalf of Americans.”

Background: 

• This plan aligns with the president’s Build Back Better plan, which includes lowering drug prices through Medicare negotiation.  
  • The president’s Build Back Better plan builds on his campaign promise to lower prices by allowing Medicare to negotiate. 
  • Since then, the president has doubled down on his commitment, and he strongly reaffirmed his support for lower drug prices through Medicare negotiation.
• The Senate Finance Committee is drafting a bill that would allow Medicare to negotiate and is likely to be included in the Senate’s final reconciliation package. Senate Finance Committee Chairman Wydenrecently released his guiding principles for drug pricing reform, which are expected to be included in the bill. Chairman Wyden said, “We are moving aggressively to put together a prescription drug package that protects those millions of Americans who believe they’re getting mugged at the pharmacy.” When asked if the reconciliation bill will include Medicare negotiation, he responded, “No question about it.” 
  • The Wall Street Journal reported, “Senate Budget Committee Chairman Bernie Sanders has said he hopes to include provisions allowing the federal government to negotiate prices for certain costly drugs in Medicare.”
• House leadership has been clear they plan to include Medicare negotiation in the reconciliation package. The House began marking up the reconciliation package, including a version of its Medicare negotiation legislation, H.R. 3, this week. 
  • In a press call, Speaker Pelosi said she wants to include Medicare negotiation in the budget bill. “We have an extraordinary opportunity to do this as we craft this reconciliation bill,” she told reporters.
  • In May, 156 House Democrats — 70 percent of the House Democratic caucus — signed a letter urging the Biden administration to include Medicare negotiation to lower drug prices in the American Families Plan. 
  • In June, 15 vulnerable House Democrats sent a letter asking congressional leadership to include Medicare negotiation in the budget bill. 

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Three patients will share their personal experiences with the high prices of prescription drugs sold by pharmaceutical giant AbbVie today before the House Committee on Oversight and Reform. The patient advocates will share their stories via recorded video during today’s hearing, “Unsustainable Drug Prices (Part III): Testimony from AbbVie CEO Richard Gonzalez,” held by the committee to examine AbbVie’s drug pricing behaviors.

“AbbVie has done everything in its power to keep raising prices on its blockbuster drugs,” said David Mitchell, a cancer patient and founder of Patients For Affordable Drugs Now. “Now Katherine, Jacqueline, and Lynn will tell Congress exactly the harm those high prices have caused to patients like them. It is time pharmaceutical companies including AbbVie are held to account for their abusive behaviors, and reforms are enacted to stop them.” 

Watch the patient advocates’ stories at the hearing here starting at 10:00 AM ET today. Below are some highlights of their stories:

• Katherine Pepper, from Bellingham, Washington, is diagnosed with psoriatic arthritis. She struggles to afford the Humira she is prescribed — the drug is priced at $5,900 for a pack of two pens. “The excessive Humira price forces me to choose every month whether to eat or fill my prescriptions,” she will tell the committee. “I urge you to consider patients like myself as you take action to lower the drug prices.”
• Jacqueline Garibay, from Austin, Texas, lives with ankylosing spondylitis. As a college student, she has to plan her future around her ability to afford her prescription drugs. Garibay was also prescribed Humira, priced at almost $6,000 for a month’s supply. “My dreams and my independence are threatened by having to constantly worry about affording my medication,” Garibay will explain. “I hope you will remember the millions of young people with chronic conditions who are facing a lifetime of daunting and ever-increasing treatment prices at the hands of companies like AbbVie.”
• Lynn Scarfuto, from Herkimer, New York, is a cancer patient who is prescribed the oral chemotherapy, Imbruvica, which is priced at $13,000 per month. She is worried that she will soon lose the ability to afford her prescription. “Instead of enjoying my retirement and focusing on my health, I carry around the overwhelming burden of Imbruvica’s price tag,” Scarfuto will say to the committee. “You have the power to change that by reining in the greed of the drug companies.”

AbbVie manufactures the blockbuster drugs Humira and Imbruvica. Humira, which treats many inflammatory conditions, is the world’s top-selling drug. AbbVie has increased the price of Humira 27 times since 2003 to more than $77,000 each year. Imbruvica, which treats cancer, is priced at more than $181,000 per year and has gone up in price nine times since its launch in 2013. 

AbbVie has a history of taking out many unnecessary patents on a singular drug in order to maintain market exclusivity longer to keep prices high — Humira is a prime example with 247 patent applications. AbbVie has been granted 88 patents for Imbruvica, which extends its commercial exclusivity to 29 years. It is expected that American patients will spend at least $41 billion on Imbruvica during the extra nine years of its monopoly.

The hearing, “Unsustainable Drug Prices (Part III): Testimony from AbbVie CEO Richard Gonzalez,” chaired by Rep. Carolyn B. Maloney, will examine the pricing and business practices of AbbVie. The hearing begins today at 10:00 AM ET and can be viewed here. Copies of the patients’ video and written stories are available upon request.

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WASHINGTON, D.C. — The following statement was issued today by David Mitchell, a cancer patient and founder of Patients For Affordable Drugs Now, in response to the $4 million ad campaign launched by Big Pharma through the American Action Network, attacking Congress’ plan to lower prescription drug prices for Americans: 

“Just as Congress is moving to deliver much-needed relief to patients struggling under the burden of high prescription drug prices, Big Pharma has launched a $4 million dark money campaign loaded with lies to attack H.R. 3. The truth is, H.R. 3 ensures we get affordable medicines we need now and innovation for the future. Patients and 88 percent of Americans support Medicare negotiation. 

“No surprise: This is straight out of Big Pharma’s playbook — PhRMA CEO Steve Ubl said himself he will be ‘rolling the tanks … to push back against policy proposals adverse to the industry’s interests.’ PhRMA is turning the tanks on the American people.

“Patients are making their voices heard. We’ll step up our efforts to support members of Congress who stand with patients and stand up against Big Pharma.”

Background: 

• On Thursday, the American Action Network launched a $4 million ad attack on H.R. 3, airing on TV, digital platforms, and phones across 43 House districts. 
• The House of Representatives reintroduced H.R. 3, the Elijah E. Cummings Lower Drug Costs Now Act, a bill that would: 
  • Allow Medicare to negotiate for lower drug prices and extend lower prices to all Americans with public or private sector insurance.
  • Limit the negotiated price of drugs in Medicare to no more than 120 percent of the average of six other OECD nations.
  • Limit annual out-of-pocket costs for Medicare beneficiaries to no more than $2,000. 
  • End drug company price gouging by penalizing drug companies that increase prices in Medicare Parts B and D faster than the rate of inflation. 
  • Support innovation and new drug development by directing some of the expected savings to the National Institutes of Health to fund critical research and drug development.
• Congressional leadership and the White House are calling for action:
  • In his address to a joint session of Congress, President Bidencommitted to “give Medicare the power to save hundreds of billions of dollars by negotiating lower drug prescription prices,” telling Congress, “Let’s do it now.” 
  • Following the speech, Speaker Pelosi said, “We’ve been working on this (H.R. 3) for almost a generation. It’s time to do that.” Rep. Pallone, chair of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, said passing the legislation is one of his top priorities. Sen. Wyden, chair of the Senate Finance Committee, said he is looking for every opportunity to include Medicare negotiation in the next legislative package. Majority Leader Schumer said he supports measures to allow Medicare to negotiate drug prices. 
• Medicare negotiation is very popular — Americans want reform. 
  • Nearly 90 percent of voters support Medicare negotiation, including 92 percent of Democrats and 85 percent of Republicans. 
  • More than 60 percent of small business owners believe that Medicare should be able to negotiate for lower prices on behalf of Americans. 
  • The vast majority of voters agree that addressing high drug prices should be a top priority for President Biden and Congress. 

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WASHINGTON, D.C. — Patients For Affordable Drugs Now founder David Mitchell will issue an urgent call for passage of H.R. 3 today in testimony before the House Education and Labor Subcommittee on Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions. Mitchell, who depends on innovation and new drugs to stay alive in the face of an incurable blood cancer, will debunk Big Pharma’s false claims that any limits on its unilateral power to dictate prices on brand-name drugs will kill innovation and new drug development. 

“Drugs are too expensive in the U.S. with no justification,” Mitchell will say at the hearing, titled Lower Drug Costs Now: Expanding Access To Affordable Health Care. “When drug makers hike prices each year, they don’t do so because the drug is more valuable. Drug companies raise prices simply because they can.”

H.R. 3 is a comprehensive bill that will lower prices, rein in price gouging, and reduce out-of-pocket costs by restoring balance to the U.S. drug pricing system to ensure both innovation and affordability.

“[H.R. 3] is estimated to save the government over $450 billion,” Mitchell will say. “Big Pharma complains that redeploying these savings to address other critical needs is tantamount to using the industry as a piggy bank. But in reality, it’s pharma that’s treated patients and taxpayers as piggy banks for years — raising prices at will to hit profit targets and trigger executive bonuses.” 

Mitchell will explain that, contrary to pharmaceutical industry fear-mongering, there is room in the system to reduce drug prices without harming research and development; that taxpayers — not pharma — foot the bill for the high-risk, foundational science behind most valuable new drugs; and that H.R. 3 will not cut back on meaningful innovation or threaten early access to drugs. 

“Let’s be clear: Big Pharma is not fighting for the interest of patients,” Mitchell will reiterate, pointing out that PhRMA’s CEO himself says that he is fighting “proposals adverse to the industry’s interests.” 

“So you have to choose a side,” Mitchell will tell the committee. “Stand with patients and taxpayers. Or stand with pharma to protect ‘the industry’s interests.’” 

The hearing begins today at 12:00 PM ET. Read a copy of Mitchell’s testimony here.

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WASHINGTON, D.C. — The following statement was issued today by David Mitchell, a cancer patient and the founder of Patients For Affordable Drugs Now, in response to the reintroduction of H.R. 3 The Elijah E. Cummings Lower Drug Costs Now Act:

“H.R. 3 is the comprehensive package of reforms patients need to lower prices of prescription drugs while ensuring continued innovation and new drug development. Too many Americans are struggling to pay almost four times what patients in other wealthy nations pay for the same drugs — forced to choose between spending on bills or food and buying the medications they need. H.R. 3 will provide relief to Americans by allowing Medicare to negotiate directly with drug companies for lower prices and by preventing price gouging.  

“On behalf of patients, who overwhelmingly support Medicare negotiation, we are grateful to the leadership and members of the House of Representatives for this critical legislation. This is the reform President Biden and Democrats have promised. This is the time to get it done.”

Background: 

• The bill would: 
  • Allow Medicare to negotiate for lower drug prices and extend lower prices to all Americans with public or private sector insurance.
  • Limit the negotiated price of drugs in Medicare to no more than 120 percent of the average of six other OECD nations.
  • Limit annual out-of-pocket costs for Medicare beneficiaries to no more than $2,000. Currently, seniors can pay more than $15,000 a year for a single prescription drug.
  • End drug company price gouging by penalizing drug companies that increase prices in Medicare Parts B and D faster than the rate of inflation. 
  • Support innovation and new drug development by investing some of the expected savings into the world-class research being conducted at the National Institutes of Health.
• Patients are suffering — skipping doses of their medications and choosing between buying groceries or picking up their medications.
  • Americans pay almost four times the prices in other countries for prescription drugs.
  • Nearly 40 percent of people reported difficulty affording their medications in the last year. 
  • Communities of color are disproportionately impacted by high drug prices. Due to economic, political, and social conditions, people of color are almost twice as likely to be uninsured and have lower incomes, making drugs even more unaffordable.
• With Medicare negotiation, patients will pay less for their prescriptions and lives will be saved. 
  • Right now, more than 1.1 million Medicare patients could die over the next decade because they cannot afford to pay for their prescriptions. 
  • If Medicare were empowered to directly negotiate prices with drug companies, there could be 94,000 fewer deaths annually.
• Americans overwhelmingly support Medicare negotiation. Nearly 90 percent of voters support Medicare negotiation, including 92 percent of Democrats and 85 percent of Republicans.  
  • More than 60 percent of small business owners believe that Medicare should be able to negotiate for lower prices on behalf of Americans. 
  • The vast majority of voters agree that addressing high drug prices should be a top priority for President Biden and Congress.

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WASHINGTON, D.C. — The following statement was issued by Sheila McLean, a patient and the executive director of Patients For Affordable Drugs Now, after the Senate Finance Committee’s vote on the confirmation of Xavier Becerra as Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services: 

“We call on Senate Majority Leader Schumer to move quickly to a vote to confirm Xavier Becerra for Secretary of U.S. Health and Human Services in the full Senate. In his confirmation hearings, Xavier Becerra was firm in expressing the Biden administration’s commitment to take on Big Pharma, tackle our broken drug pricing system, and work with Congress on bipartisan reforms that will bring down prescription drug prices for all Americans. We know from our experience working with him in California that he can get the job done.”

BACKGROUND: 

• In his confirmation hearing in front of the Senate HELP Committee Feb. 23, Becerra confirmed that tackling the high price of prescription drugs would be a top priority for him as Secretary of HHS. 
• During his hearing in front of the Senate Finance Committee Feb. 24, Becerra reasserted his commitment, promising to work with Congress on a bipartisan solution for prescription drug pricing.
• As attorney general of California, Xavier Becerra sponsored and helped pass AB 824, which bans collusive pay-for-delay deals and promotes generic drug competition. 
  • Becerra successfully defended the legislation in court, warding off multiple industry legal challenges. 
  • Becerra worked with Patients For Affordable Drugs Now to elevatepatient stories in support of the first-in-the-nation legislation. 
  • Becerra has led multiple coalitions of state attorneys general calling for the regulation of pharmacy benefit managers to increase transparency and improve drug affordability.
  • In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, Becerra urged the federal government to make Gilead’s COVID-19 drug remdesivir more affordable because it was developed using taxpayer funding.
• During his 24 years in the House prior to serving as attorney general, Becerra co-sponsored multiple bills that would allow Medicare to negotiate for lower drug prices. 
  • As chair of the House Democratic Caucus, Becerra formed a task force “to examine the rising cost of prescription drugs” in 2016.

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WASHINGTON, D.C. — The following statement was issued today by David Mitchell, a cancer patient and the founder of Patients For Affordable Drugs Now:

“Over two days of hearings, Xavier Becerra has reaffirmed his commitment to work with Congress on a bipartisan basis to develop and implement solutions that will lower prescription drug prices. In hearings before the Senate HELP and Finance Committees, Becerra demonstrated his experience and understanding of America’s broken drug pricing system and his commitment to help President Biden deliver on his promise to provide relief to patients.

“On behalf of patients across the country, Patients For Affordable Drugs Now urges the Senate to quickly confirm Xavier Becerra as Secretary of Health and Human Services. We look forward to working with Secretary Becerra in the weeks and months ahead.”

BACKGROUND: 

• In his confirmation hearing in front of the Senate HELP Committee Tuesday, Becerra confirmed that tackling the high price of prescription drugs would be a top priority for him as Secretary of HHS. 
• In his hearing in front of the Senate Finance Committee, Becerra doubled down on his commitment, promising to work with Congress on a bipartisan solution for prescription drug pricing. 
• As attorney general of California, Xavier Becerra sponsored and helped pass AB 824, which bans collusive pay-for-delay deals and promotes generic drug competition. 
  • Becerra successfully defended the legislation in court, warding off multiple industry legal challenges. 
  • Becerra worked with Patients For Affordable Drugs Now to elevatepatient stories in support of the first-in-the-nation legislation. 
  • Becerra has led multiple coalitions of state attorneys general calling for the regulation of pharmacy benefit managers to increase transparency and improve drug affordability.
  • In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, Becerra urged the federal government to make Gilead’s COVID-19 drug remdesivir more affordable because it was developed using taxpayer funding.
• During his 24 years in the House prior to serving as attorney general, Becerra co-sponsored multiple bills that would allow Medicare to negotiate for lower drug prices. 
  • As chair of the House Democratic Caucus, Becerra formed a task force “to examine the rising cost of prescription drugs” in 2016.

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WASHINGTON, D.C. — Health and Human Services Secretary-designate Xavier Becerra reinforced his commitment to swiftly tackle the high price of prescription drugs during his confirmation hearing in front of the Senate HELP committee today. Becerra demonstrated his extensive knowledge and experience taking on our broken drug pricing system, his understanding of tactics for bringing down prices for patients, and the need to spur drug innovation while ensuring taxpayers “get our money’s worth.”

“Today, Xavier Becerra committed to continuing his strong record of taking on Big Pharma and standing with patients against high drug prices,” said David Mitchell, a cancer patient and the founder of Patients For Affordable Drugs Now. “Becerra’s work on drug pricing as attorney general of California and in the House of Representatives demonstrates he has the expertise and experience to achieve comprehensive change to restore balance so Americans get the innovation we need at prices we can afford.”

Watch Becerra here.  

Patients For Affordable Drugs Now has endorsed Secretary-designate Becerra and urges the Senate to vote for his confirmation quickly. 

TRANSCRIPT:

“There is unanimity, bipartisan support for tackling the high cost of prescription medication. And I can assure you that that will be one of my priorities, is to deal with it swiftly. I tried to tackle it as the attorney general. I tried to work on that when I was in the House, and I look forward to working with you and members of this body in the future.”

“I think, Senator, we can all agree that the price that we’re paying for some of these prescription drugs is far higher than it should be. All you have to do is travel to another country, whether Canada or another country in the world, to find that we’re paying way more than people in some of these countries are paying. I took on a number of pharmaceutical companies, drug makers, by trying to go behind the curtain of how they reach their pricing. And we were able to prove that there is collusion, at times, going on. There’s a process called “pay-for-delay,” where companies will essentially collude with each other to not have a second company put a generic product on the market to compete with the brand-name product and therefore keeping the price of that brand-name pharmaceutical product high. We were able to succeed in going behind that curtain and trying to undercut that type of antitrust activity.”

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