CSRxP Encourages HELP Committee To Take Up Bipartisan FAIR Drug Pricing Act

Greater List Price Transparency Will Help Crack Down on Big Pharma’s Price-Gouging

Washington, D.C. – The Campaign for Sustainable Rx Pricing (CSRxP) issued a statement today ahead of a U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee legislative hearing Tuesday to encourage the committee to take up the Fair Accountability and Innovative Research (FAIR) Drug Pricing Act.

“We urge HELP Committee leaders to strengthen the Lower Health Care Costs Act of 2019 by including the bipartisan FAIR Drug Pricing Act,” said CSRxP executive director Lauren Aronson. “Greater list price transparency will help crack down on Big Pharma’s price-gouging by shining a light on the industry’s egregious practices.”

“The FAIR Drug Pricing Act will add an important layer of transparency and accountability to the drug pricing market by requiring manufacturers to justify substantial price hikes,” Aronson continued. “We applaud Ranking Member Patty Murray (D-WA) and Senators Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Mike Braun (R-IN) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) for their bipartisan leadership in supporting this key measure to help deter Big Pharma’s rampant price gouging.”

The FAIR Drug Pricing Act would require pharmaceutical manufacturers to submit documentation justifying list price increases in excess of 10 percent in a 12-month period and 25 percent over a three-year period for drugs priced at over $100.

Recent price hikes on two cancer drugs from Big Pharma giant Bayer provide an example of the type of price increase that would be affected by the bill.

In 2018, Bayer hiked the price of Stivarga And Nexavar by more than $1,000 per month, to totals in excess of $16,000:

• In June 2018, Bayer “Hiked The List Prices Of Two Cancer Drugs By More Than $1,000 Per Month.” (Carolyn Y. Johnson, “Two Weeks After Trump Unveiled Plan To Lower Drug Prices, Two Cancer Drugs Got A $1,000-Per-Month Price Hike,” The Washington Post, 6/8/18)
• The June Price Hikes Of Stivarga And Nexavar, Which Represented An 8 Percent Increase, Were The Drugs’ Second Increase In Six Months Making The Price For Both Drugs “13 Percent Higher Than They Were During 2017.” (Carolyn Y. Johnson, “Two Weeks After Trump Unveiled Plan To Lower Drug Prices, Two Cancer Drugs Got A $1,000-Per-Month Price Hike,” The Washington Post, 6/8/18)