The U.S. drug industry’s main lobbying group said it filed a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of a California law meant to make drug prices more transparent.
The state law “attempts to dictate national health-care policy related to drug prices in violation of the United States Constitution,” the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America said in a statement Friday.
The California measure, signed in October by Governor Jerry Brown, is among the most aggressive efforts by states to peel back the secretive process of setting drug prices. The law requires pharmaceutical companies to notify insurers and government health plans at least 60 days before a planned price increase of more than 16 percent during a two-year period, and to explain the rationale for the increase. The information would be available on a government website.
In its statement, PhRMA said that the California law “singles out drug manufacturers as the sole determinant of drug costs.” PhRMA and its drug company members have said that at least part of the blame lies with health insurers and pharmacy benefit managers that negotiate -- often in secret -- prices and discounts for drugs.
A spokeswoman for California Attorney General Xavier Becerra declined to comment on the lawsuit.
Copyright 2018 Bloomberg. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Complete your profile to continue reading and get FREE access to BenefitsPRO, part of your ALM digital membership.
Your access to unlimited BenefitsPRO content isn’t changing.
Once you are an ALM digital member, you’ll receive:
- Breaking benefits news and analysis, on-site and via our newsletters and custom alerts
- Educational webcasts, white papers, and ebooks from industry thought leaders
- Critical converage of the property casualty insurance and financial advisory markets on our other ALM sites, PropertyCasualty360 and ThinkAdvisor
Already have an account? Sign In Now
© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
