What they are saying: Broad opposition to Pelosi’s radical drug pricing plan

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Recently, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi unveiled a radical drug pricing plan that would be the wrong approach for patients, the U.S. health care system, economy, and American innovation. An increasing number of stakeholders, experts and policymakers have also spoken out in broad opposition to the Pelosi plan. Here are some of their thoughts:

“We are in a period of tremendous breakthroughs and medical discoveries, led by pharmaceutical manufacturers…[who] spend more on research and development than any other industry, creating new treatments and cures that have the potential to save and improve millions of lives. In addition to funding R&D up front, pharmaceutical manufacturers also put a sizeable share of their revenue back into R&D so that today’s treatments can help fund tomorrow’s cures. Imposing arbitrary price controls will threaten those investments and undermine a system that is working to save millions of vulnerable people.” – National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) Vice President Robyn Boerstling.
“We are concerned with Speaker Pelosi’s proposal to alter the Medicare program in such a way that patient access to innovative therapies may be curtailed. Whether that access is limited by an international pricing index or government arbitration and negotiation, any narrowing of the pool of available medications is unacceptable.” – The Schizophrenia and Related Disorders Alliance (SARDAA).
“CCD is concerned about the use of international prices. HR 3 relies on international prices to set an upper limit in negotiations. Many of the nations used to create the average international market price rely on QALY-based and discriminatory system from abroad. These systems are discriminatory against people with disabilities and do not have a place in the United States health care system.” – Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities (CCD).
“The U.S. biopharmaceutical industry is one of the few manufacturing industries that maintains a presence in the U.S. supporting more than 4.7 million American jobs and is responsible for the largest share of business R&D in the U.S. economy. H.R. 3 would stop current and future medical innovation with little to no savings realized for patients at the pharmacy counter.” – The Pharmaceutical Industry Labor-management Association (PILMA).
“Let this be a warning to any industry. This bill sets the precedent that if the government thinks a company’s – any company’s – prices are too high, it can dictate new prices.” – Institute for Policy Innovation (IPI) resident scholar Dr. Merrill Matthews.
“Massive government intervention and a 95% potential tax on drugs are not sensible solutions. Innovators and entrepreneurs in this industry want to save lives, and H.R. 3 will prevent them from producing the advanced drugs that do so.” – Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council president and CEO Karen Kerrigan.
“This policy obliterates the competitive structure of the U.S. market, hurting U.S. companies, workers and patients.” – Consumer Action for a Strong Economy (CASE) Vice President Gerard Scimeca.
“The Pelosi plan is not a good faith effort to negotiate lower prescription drug prices. It will end innovation in the US and prevent the development of the next generation of life-saving and life-preserving medicines.” – Americans for Tax Reform President Grover Norquist.
“This so-called government negotiation idea is more accurately a ‘dictate or destroy’ price control power that will halt valuable research into new life-saving medicines and give foreign countries dangerous influence over America’s health care system.” – Rep. Kevin Brady.
“Speaker Pelosi is…pushing a socialist proposal. There are bipartisan solutions to bring down prices for patients and create real transparency and accountability for this system.” – All 24 Republicans on the Energy and Commerce Committee.

Learn more about Speaker Pelosi’s drug pricing plan here.

Take action and tell Congress to stop Speaker Pelosi’s plan here.

Tom Wilbur

Tom Wilbur is Deputy Vice President of Public Affairs at PhRMA where he leads the state public affairs team and Voters for Cures, PhRMA’s grassroots advocacy initiative. Prior to joining PhRMA in 2019, Tom served as a senior aide on Capitol Hill for U.S. Rep. Fred Upton and the House Energy and Commerce Committee. Tom holds an M.A. in strategic communications from Michigan State University and a B.A. in social science and history from Central Michigan University. He enjoys spending time with family and friends, volunteering, reading and golfing.

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