The chair of a new Illinois House committee on drug affordability, State Rep. Will Guzzardi (D-Chicago) (pictured), says the Big Pharma fat cats need to go on a diet.

“What we have seen throughout the course of American history, is at moments when industry has taken advantage of consumers, and they’ve gone too far,” Guzzardi told a statehouse news conference, “when they’ve too much monopoly power and manipulated markets to take advantage of people who need their services, government has stepped in to protect consumers, over and over again in our nation’s history. And that is the moment we are seeing here with pharmaceuticals.”

Overall, he and others are calling for more regulation and accountability in drug pricing. He says more than a quarter of Illinoisans go without a prescribed drug because of the price.

A hearing is scheduled for Friday in Chicago.

HB 1441 would help Illinois become a licensed wholesaler of drugs from Canada.
HB 56 and HB 156 would require notice and disclosure of price increases.
HB 2880 would tax drugmakers in some cases.
HB 3493 would create a state regulatory board which would treat pharmaceuticals the way the Illinois Commerce Commission treats utilities.

The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) issued the following statement:

“Unfortunately, the proposals discussed today fail to address what actually drives the cost of medicines, including the middlemen in the supply chain that fail to share the rebates negotiated by biopharmaceutical manufacturers with patients at the pharmacy counter. The biopharmaceutical industry stands ready to work with legislators on real solutions to ensure patients can afford their medicines, but the proposals discussed during this press conference will do nothing to lower costs, all while putting patient safety and access at risk.

“Patients need bold reforms, not more of the same failed policies discussed today like regressive tax penalties or dangerous importation schemes that could limit patient access and compromise the safety of medicines prescribed in the U.S. The biopharmaceutical sector contributes $91.9 billion to the state’s economy and supports more than 325,000 jobs in Illinois. The industry will keep fighting to protect patient access; support the critical research that leads to new treatments and cures; and lower costs at the pharmacy counter. We hope the committee will work with us, and we look forward to presenting testimony at Friday’s hearing.”