Senate sends Jackson generic drug bill to the governor's desk
AUGUSTA — On Wednesday, the Maine Senate voted 18-13 to enact legislation from Senate Democratic Leader Troy Jackson of Allagash, which aims to lower the cost of prescription medicine by increasing the availability of more affordable generic drugs.
LD 1280, “An Act Regarding Generic Drug Pricing,” will lower drug costs by forcing brand-name drug producers to follow federal law by providing samples of their drugs to generic producers, so that generic alternatives may be sold when the drug’s patent expires.
“The cost of health care in this country is simply unacceptable. This bill marks a huge win for working families and seniors struggling to afford prescription medicine vital to their health and well-being,” said Sen. Jackson. “I hope the Governor will join me in standing up to Big Pharma and join the Senate in supporting this bill.”
The FDA currently requires name-brand pharmaceutical producers to make their drugs available to generic manufacturers. However, Big Pharma can and does withhold their product from generic companies, citing an FDA provision called “REMS,” or Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategies, as the basis for their refusal. REMS is intended to ensure drug safety but is used by name-brand drug producers as cover to shield their products from generic competition.
LD 1280 would amend the Maine Pharmacy Act to require that a drug distributed in Maine be made available for sale to an FDA-approved generic drug manufacturer who is seeking to develop a cheaper alternative. The bill was also amended in the Senate to protect name-brand producers from liability in lawsuits involving generics created under the terms of the Act.
“Maine people should not have to jump through hoops just to purchase medication they need to live and work,” said Sen. Jackson. “It’s high time we took action to lower the cost of prescription drugs. We aren’t here to represent Big Pharma, we are here to represent Maine people.”
In Maine and across the country, people are struggling to afford the cost of medications necessary to maintain their health and well-being. A 2015 report from the U.S. Center for Disease Control reveals that 8 percent of Americans do not take their medication as prescribed due to cost and 15 percent have asked their provider for cheaper alternatives.
Generics are 80-85 percent less costly than the equivalent brand-name drugs and are prescribed more than 90 percent of the time when they are available. Generics saved Maine $1.05 billion in 2016, including $156 million in savings for Medicaid. A recent poll shows that 87 percent of those surveyed supported action to make it easier for generic drugs to come to the market.
LD 1280 received overwhelming bipartisan support in the Legislature’s Labor Commerce Research and Economic Development Committee with a vote of 11-2. The bill will now head to the governor, who has 10 days to sign it, veto it, or allow it to become law without his signature.
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