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AARP Endorses Plan by Senators Van Hollen and Scott to Lower Prescription Drug Costs

Today, Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) and Rick Scott (R-Fl.) applauded AARP’s endorsement of their We Protect American Investment in Drugs (PAID) Act of 2019 to address the soaring cost of prescription drug prices. The We PAID Act prohibits pharmaceutical companies from charging American consumers unreasonable prices for life-saving drugs when the companies develop prescription drugs using federally-funded research, like NIH or CDC grants.

Read AARP’s endorsement letter HERE.

Senators Chris Van Hollen and Rick Scott said, “The We PAID Act is a common-sense way to reduce the cost of prescription drug prices, and we thank the AARP for their support. Families across our nation, including seniors, are struggling to afford the prescription drugs they need to survive. There is no reason drug companies that use taxpayer dollars to develop prescription drugs should be raking in profits by charging unreasonable prices to American patients. This bill prevents that, and we urge all of our colleagues to join us in support of this common-sense, bipartisan legislation.”

The We PAID Act of 2019 would:

  • Direct the National Academy of Medicine to complete a study on how to determine the reasonableness of a drug’s price, taking into account factors including:
    • Federal funding used in the development of the drug;
    • Affordability of the drug to consumers; and
    • The price of the drug in other similar, industrialized countries
  • Establish an independent Drug Affordability and Access Committee to determine a reasonable price for each applicable drug based on the results of the National Academy of Medicine study.
  • Require drug manufacturers that enter into licensing agreements for technology patented by the U.S. government or by an entity that developed the technology using federal funding through NIH or other federal agencies to agree to:
    • Not exceed the reasonable price determined by the Drug Affordability and Access Committee beginning after one year on the market;
    • Limit the annual price increase on any drug developed using this licensed technology to the rate of medical inflation; and
    • Submit the manufacturer’s drug price and information on the development of the drug to the Drug Affordability and Access Committee for a reasonable pricing determination
  • Require proper disclosure of government support in the development of patented technology, and allow a private right of action and/or a claim to be brought under Inter Partes Review before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office’s Patent and Trial Appeal Board in the event proper disclosure does not occur.

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