Is There An ‘October Surprise’ Coming For Drug Pricing?

 
• By Ben Comer

US Congressional Democrats made Halloween the new deadline for President Biden’s Build Back Better Act, to be passed through the reconciliation process. Savings generated from prescription drug price cuts represent a key pot of money to offset the legislation’s other spending initiatives.

jack-o-lantern
• Source: Alamy

Negotiations are ongoing between various factions of the democratic party, in both the House and the Senate, with the goal of passing the Build Back Better Act by a self-imposed deadline of 31 October. House legislation placed an initial price tag of $3.5tn on the package, but the Senate is likely to cut that figure down to around $2tn, said Ryan Urgo, managing director, health policy, Avalere Health, during a 15 October webcast.

Drug pricing legislation is expected to be a part of the final bill. The question of the moment is whether...

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