Washington, DC—The Alliance to Protect Medical Innovation’s Executive Director Patrick O’Connor released the following statement on new legislation introduced by Reps. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.), Ro Khanna (D-Calif.), Peter Welch (D-Vt.), Joe Neguse (D-Colo.) and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) that would cap prescription drug prices:
“Every day brings new bills to cap drug prices. I just hope the authors are candid about the consequences of their legislation. Most of these bills would impose dramatic changes to our healthcare system that could restrict patients’ access to the medicine they need. If we’re going to make that tradeoff, we need to be upfront about the drawbacks.”
Earlier this week, the Alliance issued a statement on negotiation: “There are already robust price negotiations in Medicare’s prescription-drug program, as evidenced by the declining costs of those plans. The Congressional Budget Office has repeatedly said negotiation would not generate meaningful savings. CBO also noted that the only way to reduce prices would be to threaten access to those drugs the government targets. Supporters of these measures need to be upfront about those tradeoffs.”
The Alliance to Protect Medical Innovation is a nonpartisan group committed to fostering a national conversation on medical innovation and patient access to care that is holistic and fact-based. The Alliance evaluates policy proposals and fact-checks claims affecting biomedical innovation, as well as responds to attacks on this innovation ecosystem. We are committed to preserving the pipeline of breakthrough medicines that reduce costs within the health care system and help people live longer, healthier, and more productive lives. The Alliance receives funding from biopharmaceutical companies and other entities that represent the industry.