Mintz’s PBM practice is pleased to present a 2024 year-to-date PBM Policy and Legislative Update. This edition builds upon prior issues and summarizes activity from January through June that impacts the PBM industry. It...more
Mintz’s PBMs & Pharmacies practice is pleased to present the second edition of our Mintz IRA Update, a regular publication that delves into developments under the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (“IRA”) impacting the health...more
Today, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released the first 10 drugs (“Listed Drugs”) that will be included in the Inflation Reduction Act’s Medicare Drug Price Negotiation Program (“Negotiation Program”)....more
It’s finally here – the Drug Pricing Plan that President Biden ordered the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to produce by the end of August (the “Plan”) was released publicly by the Administration on September 9,...more
9/13/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Biosimilars Action Plan (BAP) ,
BPCIA ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Drug Pricing ,
Executive Orders ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Medicaid Drug Rebate Program ,
Medicare Part B ,
Medicare Part D ,
MedPAC ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Prescription Drugs
PCMA's lawsuit over the legality of the Trump-era drug price transparency rules is yet another battle in the on-going war in Washington over how to effectively address high drug prices. While Congress grapples with how to...more
On Friday, July 9, 2021, President Biden released an Executive Order “to promote competition in the American economy” and to “to reduce the trend of corporate consolidation” (the "Order"). As part of this Order, the Biden...more
7/20/2021
/ Antitrust Provisions ,
Biden Administration ,
Biosimilars ,
Competition ,
CREATE Act ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Drug Pricing ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Generic Drugs ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
USPTO
On April 28, 2021, President Biden gave his first address to Congress and announced the American Families Plan (AFP or the Act). The AFP follows the 1.9 trillion-dollar stimulus, the American Rescue Plan Act, signed into law...more
President Trump has followed through on his threat to pharmaceutical manufacturers, signing new executive orders on Sunday that take a preliminary step toward the President’s goal of tying domestic drug prices to the prices...more
Senators Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and Ron Wyden (D-OR), Chairman and Ranking Member (respectively) of the Senate Finance Committee, have fired the latest shot in Congress’s ongoing battle against high drug prices. Last week, the...more
In an unexpected turn of events, the Trump administration has apparently reversed course and has withdrawn the proposed rule that would have amended the discount safe harbor under the Anti-Kickback Statute to eliminate...more
7/12/2019
/ Anti-Kickback Statute ,
Drug Pricing ,
Executive Orders ,
Medicaid ,
Medicare ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Pharmacy Benefit Manager (PBM) ,
Prescription Drugs ,
Price Transparency ,
Proposed Rules ,
Safe Harbors ,
Secretary of HHS ,
Trump Administration
On January 31, 2019, the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) issued a proposed rule that would amend the discount safe harbor under the Anti-Kickback Statute (AKS) to eliminate protection for certain drug...more
2/5/2019
/ Anti-Kickback Statute ,
Comment Period ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Drug Pricing ,
Medicare Part D ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Pharmacy Benefit Manager (PBM) ,
Prescription Drugs ,
Proposed Rules ,
Public Comment ,
Safe Harbors
In May, the Trump Administration announced its Blueprint to Lower Drug Prices and HHS Secretary Azar issued a Request for Information seeking comments from interested parties “to help shape future policy development and...more
7/24/2018
/ Anti-Kickback Statute ,
Biosimilars ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Drug Pricing ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Health Care Providers ,
Manufacturers ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Prescription Drugs ,
Secretary of HHS ,
Trump Administration
On Friday, after weeks of delay, the President finally delivered his Drug Pricing Speech and released the HHS Blueprint detailing the Trump Administration’s plan to lower drug prices and reduce out-of-pocket costs....more
5/14/2018
/ Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Drug Pricing ,
Health Care Providers ,
Manufacturers ,
Medicaid ,
Medicare ,
Medicare Part D ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Prescription Drugs ,
Public Comment ,
REMS ,
Section 340B ,
Trump Administration
Last week, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) released proposals to address recent criticism over rising drug prices. CMS proposed to...more
Rising drug prices and attempts to contain drug costs continue to take center stage at the federal level – particularly in the ramp-up to the 2016 presidential election. In January 2015, a bill was introduced that would...more
In late January, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (“CMS”) released the much anticipated Covered Outpatient Drugs Final Rule with Comment (the “AMP Final Rule”). The rule creates the regulatory definition for...more
With 2015 coming to a close, we wanted to provide a recap of the major updates impacting the pharmacy industry and what pharmaceutical manufacturers, pharmacy benefit managers (“PBMs”), and pharmacies might expect in 2016. ...more
12/9/2015
/ AstraZeneca ,
Biosimilars ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Drug Pricing ,
FDA Approval ,
HRSA ,
Kickbacks ,
Kmart ,
Novartis ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Pharmacies ,
Section 340B ,
Value-Based Purchasing
Last week, pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) and independent pharmacy representatives provided testimony to the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Regulatory Reform, Commercial and Antitrust Law in a congressional hearing examining...more