WSJ: Cancer Patients Pay A Steep Price in Manchin-Biden Drug Pricing Scheme
Price controls halt progress towards lifesaving cancer cures
August 4, 2022 - Blog - Health - Op-eds and Speeches - Press Releases
The Biden Administration claimed that accelerating progress towards curing cancer was a priority, yet the new Manchin-Biden Build Back Better bill is a surrender in the fight against cancer. It leaves patients with fewer choices and higher prices, and halts progress towards lifesaving cancer treatments and cures.
READ: Democrats’ Price Control Scheme is a Surrender in the Fight Against Cancer
The Wall Street Journal editorial board notes that Richard Gonzales, CEO of AbbVie, a pharmaceutical research and development company, said of the Democrats’ socialist drug price control scheme : “It’s not a negotiation. We should just call it what it is. It’s price controls."
The bill delays progress towards new treatments that might save a cancer patient’s life by disincentivizing testing of drugs against different forms of cancer and for us in late-stage patients:
From the Wall Street Journal:
“[Mr. Gonzalez] also warned that drug makers will face a perverse dilemma: ‘Do I choose not to seek approval in those late-stage patients so I don’t start the clock?’ By waiting longer before seeking approval, drug makers could boost the return on their investment.
“Mr. Gonzalez said the deal also creates a disincentive to test treatments for new indications. Treatments that work against one form of cancer often will work against others, especially drugs that target common gene or protein mutations-e.g., the KRAS mutation that can cause colon, lung and pancreatic cancer."
The Wall Street Journal editorial board concludes:
“Democrats say their price controls will save the federal government $288 billion, but this doesn’t take into account the less visible cost of altering incentives to invest in pharmaceutical innovation. One way or another, patients will pay a steep price."
