The Obama administration needed the pharmaceutical industry's support to secure passage of its landmark health care bill. Industry leaders came to the table to negotiate in good faith with the administration. Now that the legislation is law, President Obama has wasted little time in attacking the industry on a number of fronts.
President Obama has already said that the federal government will “negotiate” for cheaper drug prices.
PhRMA’s John Castellani opposes this move and also points out that PhRMA has “significant concerns about the overly broad powers of the unelected IPAB, which could enact sweeping Medicare changes without congressional oversight and which would not be subject to judicial or administrative review.”
Greg Conko of CEI also explains President Obama’s opposition to a key aspect of his own health care law:
As part of the ObamaCare legislation enacted last year, Congress created a mechanism for the Food and Drug Administration to approve generic versions of specialized biotech medicines called biologics. In recognition that biologics are far more costly to develop than conventional drugs, and that it takes innovators longer to recoup their research expenses, the law gives brand biotechs a 12-year exclusive marketing period before the FDA may approve generic competitors.
Now, just one year after that bargain was struck by Congress, Obama wants to upset the careful balance between quicker access on the one hand and incentives for innovation on the other in order to exploit the promise of cheaper generics. But here too, alleged savings are more theoretical than real.
White House officials are claiming an expected $2.3 billion in savings over the coming decade from shortening the exclusivity period. But in the long run, making it harder for biotechnology firms to recover their massive investments in new treatment options could jeopardize patient care and lead to higher health care costs by cutting off an important source of medical innovation.
CMPI interviewed Senator Dan Coats earlier this year about the health care law’s impact on the state of Indiana, which is home to a flourishing life sciences industry.
Senator Coats warned that the law would have a devastating impact on the industry (and by extension patients and employees).
Watch that interview here:
