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The nation's capital is booming as CEOs of Big Pharma repeat their testimony for Tuesday's big audience on drug pricing. What to expect? High political theater, on the one hand, Republicans and Democrats speaking both.
But do not dismiss the event as a mere staging, say analysts. Senators on the platform have presented price bills and investigations, and the Trump administration appears ready to participate in the crackdown. In addition, every media outlet on the television channel will cover it – focusing on the most dramatic exchanges, of course – and these televised news feeds and media headlines will hit Americans who are already fed up with costs. prescription and who are wary of the industry.
To help you better understand, we have gathered some pointers on what you will see on Tuesday, a window or two on behind the scenes action, as well as news and ideas on what will follow. Do you have your own thoughts? Let us know. We could add them to the mix.
the frames expected to appear The Senate Finance Committee is comprised of six CEOs representing AbbVie, AstraZeneca, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Merck, Pfizer and Sanofi, and a global president of the pharmaceutical industry, Jennifer Taubert of Johnson & Johnson. By mounting the interrogation team are the committee chairman, Senator Charles Grassley, critic for the Republican and state pharmaceutical industry in Iowa, and Senator Ron Wyden, the first Democrat and author of at least one of the new bills for drug pricing . Wyden has also appealed to Twitter to shame drug manufacturers to send their executives after some initial reluctance.
RELATED: When you think about it, Big Pharma's CEOs decide to go to the Senate price hearings
The fact that so many Big Pharma leaders had to answer The call to testify is a sign that the influence of pharma is declining in Washington, says Bloomberg. After years of price-related drug scandals, accusing presidential tweets and public dismay (read: Consternation of voters), lawmakers are more willing than ever to take on the drug industry. Republicans included. The PhRMA is back since the changes made to part D of Medicare, a few years ago, announced the press service. The industry lobby and its counterpart in the biotech sector, BIO, are scrambling to present industry-friendly proposals, likely to answer the big political question: what about the price of drugs? Bloomberg Article
Another bad news: Politico compared these audiences to public turning points in other industries, namely Big Tobacco. "It's finally the turn of the pharmaceutical industry," said Chris Jennings, who has been working on health policies in Clinton and Obama's white houses. And if lawmakers do not do something after making such a big deal of holding these leaders accountable, voters will probably think that Congress will never act – it's not a good idea then that the 2020 elections are already preparing. Analysis
Businesses know that too, and they have hired experts in public relations, law and lobbying. prepare their frames for hearings, Politico notes. Think of the preparation of the presidential debate, but the CEOs who are not necessarily followers of politics. Expect that they will try to seem contrite while talking about their life-saving products, Politico sources said, while Stat quoted a lawyer who was dedicated solely to this type of preparation. The idea is to be "respectful and without deference," he said, adding, "Do you want Lester Holt to talk about you tonight?"
After collect information For its part, David Maris, an analyst from Wells Fargo, who has been ringing the alarm for several months or even years, in terms of pricing in Washington, said that he was waiting for that the hearings are "focused, focused and only start a vigorous dialogue". I will give more requests for information and hearings. And note this: the president and members of other congressional committees may disagree, but Grassley and Wyden "are not contradictory," says Maris. In fact, they have "good working relationships on this subject," says Maris – which means a united offense at the hearings. he is not on board with the Big Tobacco comparison, though. "Comparing an industry that saves lives to another that would have hidden the deadly dangers of its products seems very disappointing to us, but we think that reflects the extreme feeling that surrounds the issue," he wrote.
Sanofi's chief executive, Olivier Brandicourt, will not visit the courtroom without having an idea of the issues that will arise. rising prices of insulin. Grassley and Wyden opened an investigation Friday with letters to the French drug maker and its two insulin giants, Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk, asking for information about it. Five pages of questions, actually. And Brandicourt no doubt was already preparing the prospect; He is the only one of the three who testified at a time when price increases led to lawsuits, investigations and a public outcry. Letter (PDF)
As if to provide study notes for the executive's testimony – and senators' questions – the New York Times editorial board has compiled a list of questions that drug manufacturers must answer. Among these are the usual R & D expenses, pricing issues, but also: what is the right margin for a life-saving medicine? And our favorite: Why would a drug need 100 patents? Editorial
Here is something for the There is nothing new under the sun file: This is far from the first time that multinational drug companies are convened on the carpet of Congress. Every decade or so, history repeats itself. And as reported by NPR, some 60-year-old hearings were on the same topic that we can hope to chart on Tuesday, from price hikes to patent abuse to excessive marketing. Some of the same players also showed up. Then Merck President John Connor delivered his speech, as would Merck CEO Ken Frazier. article
Interested in what the leaders of the pharmaceutical industry have done and said during these hearings? Here are some highlights, courtesy of Kaiser Health News.
Finally, A positive for executives on the spot? They will have the rendezvous for themselves, which will give them a chance to shake the pharmacy benefits as much as possible, whose rebate and rebate applications from pharmaceutical companies drive up prices. on the rise, notes Bloomberg. The Trump administration subscribes to this idea; I just saw HHS Secretary Alex Azar taking action to remove the rebates in federal health plans – and later urged Congress to do the same for business insurance.
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