Schakowsky Chairs Hearing On Prescription Drug Pricing

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky, a Senior Chief Deputy Whip, chaired a hearing in her Consumer Protection and Commerce Subcommittee of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, entitled "Profits Over Consumers: Exposing How Pharmaceutical Companies Game the System."

"I presided over a hearing today in the Committee on Energy and Commerce's Subcommittee on Consumer Protection and Commerce that shined a light on the many ways Big Pharma uses various tactics to game the system, thus allowing them to price gouge consumers.

"The Federal Trade Commission has done little to address these anti-competitive tactics and they need clearer authority to do more. That's why my legislation will take a fresh approach to this issue, with a comprehensive and new solution that is focused on transparency and enforcement. I'm moving full steam ahead in drafting the bill, utilizing all I learned from our hearing today. My bill will not be identical to S. 1416 or H.R. 4398. It takes into consideration the complexity of our drug market and offers nuanced guidelines for the roles FDA and FTC should play in addressing product hopping."

The witnesses at the hearing were: Michael A. Carrier, Co-Director, Rutgers Institute for Information Policy and Law; Jeff Francer, Senior Vice President and General Counsel, Association for Accessible Medicines; David Mitchell, Founder, Patients for Affordable Drugs & Patients for Affordable Drugs NOW; and Joanna M. Shepherd, Professor of Law, Emory University School of Law.

Click here for video of her opening statement and questions to witnesses.

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