How We Wrested Control of Our Rx Drug Spending. Maybe You Can, too.

This week, we ' ve heard reporting that the big Congressional bill which was supposed to include a provision for Medicare, which is the taxpayer-funded senior insurance plan to actually negotiate prices on prescription drugs (just as most other countries, as well as the Veteran ' s Administration [VA] already do right now) was going to be omitted because of a handful of PhRMA-bankrolled lawmakers pushed to kill it. That said, it isn ' t over until its over. Although we don ' t know what she might or might not do, House Majority Leader Nancy Pelosi still has some tricks in her own playbook if it doesn ' t happen and she decides to play tough. In 2018, Nancy Pelosi marched into PhRMA ' s Washington, DC offices and told them in detailed terms of a federal statute (which is already law today) that allows the U.S. government to effectively strip drug companies of exclusive licenses to some blockbuster medicines (seeHERE). That provides a path of action if lawmakers choose to do so.I ' m referring to " march-in " rights. March-in rights were created back in 1980, as part of the Bayh-Dole Act. That law was signed into law by former President Jimmy Carter. March-in rights were introduced as part of a 1980 federal law aimed at promoting access to generic drugs, and it gives government agencies the authority to require private companies to license patents to third-parties, should the patent-holders happen to receive public funding. So far, to the best of my knowledge, I don '...
Source: Scott's Web Log - Category: Endocrinology Tags: coupon-generating websites apps PBM prescriptions Source Type: blogs