Bill Cassidy - Ranking Member of the Senate HELP Committee | Official U.S. Senate headshot
Bill Cassidy - Ranking Member of the Senate HELP Committee | Official U.S. Senate headshot
U.S. Senators Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA) and Dick Durbin (D-IL) have introduced legislation aimed at reducing prescription drug costs for American patients. The Reforming Evergreening and Manipulation that Extends Drug Years (REMEDY) Act seeks to promote competition by eliminating barriers to Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for lower-cost generic drugs.
“No matter where I go in Louisiana people always mention the high cost of prescription drugs,” said Dr. Cassidy. “To lower the cost of drugs we need to increase competition. Getting generics to market faster increases access and saves money for patients and taxpayers.”
Senator Durbin added, “Americans are forced to pay sky-high prescription drug costs because pharmaceutical manufacturers often game the patent system to extend their monopolies, avoiding competition from lower-cost generic drugs. These abusive practices do not promote innovative research and don’t serve the best interests of patients.” He emphasized that the REMEDY Act will increase competition and help reduce drug costs by curbing patent manipulation by Big Pharma.
The REMEDY Act proposes narrowing the scope of the 30-month stay by requiring brand-name manufacturers, upon FDA approval of their drug, to identify a single patent eligible for the 30-month stay if challenged.
Additionally, the act aims to remove incentives for drug manufacturers to file multiple patents and lift barriers that delay generic market entry. This policy would allow generic drug manufacturers easier market entry by providing more certainty and visibility into the patent landscape.
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