Tammy Baldwin cosponsors bill to crack down on large pharmaceutical price increases

Senate Democrats introduced a bill on March 27 to protect Americans with private health insurance from large price increases for the medications they use.

The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, which was signed into law by President Joe Biden, included a provision that required pharmaceutical companies to refund money to the federal government if they raised the prices of many drugs covered by Medicare Part B and Part D by more than the annual inflation rate. Prior to that, a 2017 report by the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General had noted that the prices of 50 of the 64 most expensive drugs in 2015 had gone up faster than the inflation rate, adding about $1.4 billion in excess costs for the federal government.

The Lower Drug Costs of Families Act would apply the same principle to drugs used by people covered by private health insurance plans, discouraging manufacturers from unduly raising prices by fining them the difference between their increased price and the price that would accord with the inflation rate and using that money to reduce the federal budget deficit. 

The bill is sponsored by Nevada Democratic Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto. Wisconsin Democratic Sen. Tammy Baldwin is an original cosponsor.

“Everywhere I go in Wisconsin, I hear from families who need relief from the skyrocketing cost of prescription drugs. Too often big corporations can jack up drug prices on a whim, leaving Wisconsinites stuck between paying through the nose or forgoing their medication while big pharmaceutical companies get richer,” Baldwin said in a press release. “This legislation will build on our work to lower costs for Wisconsin families and protect all Americans from big drug companies’ outrageous price hikes.”

The bill has been referred to the Senate Finance Committee, but is unlikely to advance further in the Republican-led Senate.

The proposal has been endorsed by the AFL-CIO, the American Federation of Teachers, Patients for Affordable Drugs Now, and the United Mine Workers of America, as well as the American College of Physicians.

“The Lower Drug Costs for Families Act will extend the drug price inflation protections that apply to seniors in Medicare to everyone who has private insurance,” AFL-CIO director of government affairs Jody Calemine said in a statement issued by the office of Michigan Democratic Sen. Elissa Slotkin, another cosponsor. “Research shows that billions will be saved in premiums and copayments by people who have coverage through their job, through an Affordable Care Act marketplace plan, or coverage they buy on their own. We thank Senator Cortez Masto for introducing this important legislation.”