FILE – Pharmaceuticals are seen in North Andover, Mass., on June 15, 2018. AP Photo/Elise Amendola, file) As former congressmen from opposite sides of the aisle, we rarely agree on healthcare policy. But one thing we do agree on is that, for far too long, the price of healthcare, especially prescription drugs, has been unaffordable for Americans. The question before Congress is whether that finally changes.
Every month, millions of Americans face choices no one should have to make on whether to fill a prescription or pay rent, whether to take a full dose or stretch a month’s supply into two. We both understand that healthcare affordability is a kitchen-table issue, especially when families across the country struggle to make ends meet as the cost of living rises in our country.
Not only do high drug prices strain family budgets, but they also make it harder for patients to take their medications as prescribed. That leads to poorer health, more hospitalizations, and up to $500 billion annually in avoidable healthcare costs. Sadly, this is of little to no concern to Big Pharma, which has a profit-first, patient-last mindset.
In fact, the U.S. generates 75 percent of Big Pharma’s global profits even though we represent just 5 percent of the global population. Essentially, the pharmaceutical industry knows they make their money in the U.S., which is why they charge us more than three times what patients in other wealthy countries pay for the same medications. It’s also why they routinely accept dramatically lower prices in other wealthy nations like Canada, Germany, Japan and the United Kingdom.
Consider Eliquis, a common drug for treating heart conditions. Research found that Big Pharma has charged $7,100 per year for the treatment in the U.S. compared to just $650 in France. Americans aren’t receiving a superior product — they’re paying more because the current system gives manufacturers greater pricing power here than in comparable countries. This is just one example of a pricing model that consistently leads to Big Pharma overcharging Americans.
For decades, this business model faced little to no political resistance. Americans consistently voiced frustration with rising prescription drug costs, but Washington offered few solutions to meaningfully lower drug prices. That’s beginning to change as momentum builds around one pragmatic, commonsense reform: the Most Favored Nation (MFN) drug pricing policy.
The White House accelerated this conversation by making international reference pricing a national priority, issuing an executive order directing federal agencies to pursue MFN pricing. The signal was clear: Americans should not pay more for prescription drugs than patients in comparable countries. We’re not going to use American tax dollars to help fund the development of these drugs and then find ourselves being ripped off and paying more than countries overseas. We’re balancing the scales and putting America first. This principle is explored in new research from the Pharmaceutical Reform Alliance that examines Big Pharma’s anti-competitive, profit-first pricing practices that are driving soaring drug prices and offers MFN drug pricing policy codification as the solution to lower them.
Executive action was an important first step, but executive orders can be reversed. Big Pharma can — and will —simply wait for the next administration rather than accept lasting reform. Congress has an opportunity to decide whether this shift in American drug pricing policy becomes permanent, ensuring that no future administration or lobbying campaign can quietly reverse course. And bipartisan legislation already exists. The Global Fairness in Drug Pricing Act, introduced last year by lawmakers from both parties, would make that policy the standard.
Bipartisan opportunities to tackle healthcare costs are rare. Congress shouldn’t waste one of the few moments when meaningful consensus is beginning to emerge. Recent national polling finds that 77 percent of Americans say they are more likely to support a candidate who takes on the pharmaceutical industry, and nearly the same share want the Most Favored Nation executive order codified into law. Washington should listen to voters and move to codify MFN drug pricing policy into law.
Joe Cunningham is a former U.S. congressman from South Carolina, and is a spokesperson for the Pharmaceutical Reform Alliance. He was the first Democrat to be elected to South Carolina’s 1st District in over 40 years. JD Hayworth represented Arizona in the U.S. House from 1995-2007, and is spokesman for the Pharmaceutical Reform Alliance.
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