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Big Win for Big Pharma: Bill to Force Transparency in Drug Pricing Pulled

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Wednesday, January 13, 2016   

LOS ANGELES - Once again a bill to force drug makers to justify why certain drugs cost so much died in the California State Legislature.

On Monday, Assembly member David Chiu pulled the bill, known as A.B. 463, when it became apparent it would not pass the Assembly Health Committee.

The bill would have forced pharmaceutical companies to submit to the state a raft of information on drugs that cost more than $10,000 a year; data that would be published annually.

Judson True is the assembly member's chief of staff.

"We didn't have the support today to move the bill forward but we're actively talking to all of the members of our coalition, including labor unions, business groups, consumer advocates and health plans about how to move forward this year," says True.

Under the transparency measure, drug companies would have had to disclose how much they spend on ingredients, research, trials, manufacture and marketing. The bill is supported by insurance companies and consumer groups but the California Life Sciences Association, which represents drug companies, said in a statement that it amounts to unnecessary red tape that would stifle future research.

Anthony Wright, executive director with the nonprofit consumer advocacy group Health Access, says the public remains outraged when drug companies jack up prices on decades-old drugs or charge $1,000 a pill for new medications.

"There's no doubt that big pharma won this round," he says. "But this is an issue that is not going away and politicians will ignore the public anger at prescription drug prices at their peril."

A similar bill failed to advance last year.


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