Smoke and Mirrors?
Is the Inflation Reduction Act going to bear fruit for Rx drug users?
Congress continually passes legislation that has a “FEEL GOOD” title that the American public accepts as meaning they are going to benefit from the legislation.
Congress has now passed the “Inflation Reduction Act” that in part is supposed address the high cost of Big Pharma Medication.
Full story here: Inflation Reduction Act
In 2003, the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement and Modernization Act was passed. It precluded Medicare from negotiating Rx drug prices. It was introduced by Senator Tauzin from Louisiana. It had a feel good title.
The following chart represents what the result of this Act was:
SKY HIGH DRUG PRICES!
The chart is from AARP and it show Rx Drug Prices tripled from 2005 to 2020!
Senator Tauzin after this bill which he sponsored went to work as President of the Pharmaceutical Research Association with a salary of 2 MILLION dollars. George W Bush just signed the bill as a good fellow without a clue what the impact would be. Maybe.
In January 2005, the day after his term in Congress ended, he began work as the head of the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA).[6] a powerful trade group for pharmaceutical companies. Tauzin was hired at a salary outsiders estimated at $2 million a year. Five years later, he announced his retirement from the association (as of the end of June 2010).[1]
Two months before resigning as chair of the U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce, which oversees the drug industry, Tauzin had played a key role in shepherding through Congress the Medicare Prescription Drug Bill.[7] Democrats said that the bill was "a give-away to the drugmakers" because it prohibited the government from negotiating lower drug prices and bans the importation of identical cheaper drugs from Canada and elsewhere.
For more info go to wikipedia:
Fast forward, and now we are going to fix the problem? I doubt it. AARP is patting themselves on the back for being good fellows in helping to have this new legislation enacted. There main source of income is selling insurance.
There are in excess of 10,000 Rx drugs on the market and the new legislation is designed that Medicare can negotiate prices on the top 10. Not immediately, not till 2026 will they be lowered. Gives Big Pharma 3 years to adjust, which probably means that drugs like Eliquis will be designated as the only drug for blood thinning and that Coumadin will be taken off the market and all will be well. The price will be cut in half and there profit will skyrocket because they will own 100% of the market.
That means the new legislation allows only .1% of the drugs under Medicare to be negotiated for best price in 2026.
In 2027 they will add 15 more for negotiation and each year there after adding 20 per year.
The Good News is Insulin users will only pay $35 per month for their insulin needs. Currently the cost is 10 to 30 times that amount to the average
Type I diabetic. It has to mean that the taxpayer will pay for the true cost of the insulin that Lilly contols.
Cost of Insulin How it may work.
I was told by Big Pharma insiders years ago, that they would like to stop advertising Rx drugs to the consumer, but it would not happen on a voluteer basis because of competition. The only way it would work is if Congress legislated the issue and outlawed it.
If our Congressman truly were working on behalf of Seniors and the American public, this would have been done with the current legislation. They should have demanded that Big Pharma reduce their drug prices by the 6 BILLION DOLLARS/YEAR. they spend on consumer advertising which is only designed to encourage patients to demand their physician write for the new high priced drugs.
There are so many manipulated components to the new push, I doubt it will benefit those who need the relief. I don’t trust anything Congress passes that is directed by speciel interests. The current Covid crisis demonstrates how politics, mass media and Big Pharma work together for the benefit of Big Pharma.
My thoughts for ther day,
Thomas A Braun RPh.
The Medicare Prescription Drug Improvement and Modernization Act of 2003, which created the "donut hole," also kept prescription drugs prohibitively expensive by preventing the negotiation of drug prices under Medicare.
Everything deep state and leftist govt does is exactly this way. The current marriage act is another current example - it does anything BUT protect marriage while it ushers in legal discrimination against religious orgs and will open lawsuits against churches and religious orgs like crazy - it's their bread and butter this smoke and mirrors. Again, they do Saul Alinsky's 12 rules better than anyone.