Many of the problems in America’s health care system stem from heavy-handed government intervention that misaligns the market - resulting in higher costs for both consumers and taxpayers. But rather than chip away at these barriers, a proposal by Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) would once again put government between consumers and their ability to access vital medications. His misguided proposal gives the Department of Health and Human Services $1 million to implement new rules requiring pharmaceutical companies to list their prices in any advertisement campaign - a standard no other product must meet. The Senate should reject this deeply flawed measure, which Durbin is expected to introduce as an amendment to an upcoming appropriations bill.
Just last month, NTU joined 13 other free-market, pro-taxpayer organizations on a letter arranged by the Center for Individual Freedom stating our strong opposition to Durbin’s amendment. From that July 27th letter we wrote: “We oppose the Durbin amendment because it violates the First Amendment, would confuse patients and misdirect federal public health resources... We believe that proposal would actually inflict more harm than benefit for patients, and could have unintended consequences of deterring patients from seeking care.”
Requiring private companies to list their prices is an attempt by the government to bully manufacturers into lowering their prices -- and it’s unlikely to work. The “as seen on TV” price would not necessarily be the price that consumers pay. Often, pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) and insurers will negotiate with drug companies for rebates and other discounts to reduce the cost for consumers. While PBMs are designed to pass these savings onto consumers, they don’t always do so, and this is an area where lawmakers should look to reform.
The cost of medications is a serious issue for consumers on private insurance and taxpayers which foot higher Medicare and Medicaid prescription drug costs. While some politicians like Sen. Durbin would like you to believe that medication is expensive because companies are greedy and don’t care about patients, the fact is that research and development of life saving drugs is an expensive, risky, and time consuming process. Studies show that the cost of bringing a drug to market is over $2 billion and takes an average of 12 years.
The Durbin amendment could make it more difficult for some manufacturers to financially support new innovations in life saving drugs. If that happens, it means patients will not have access to important medications and taxpayers will shoulder a heavier burden for programs like Medicaid and Medicare. There are better prescriptions to protect consumers and this is certainly not the cure.