Largest Drugmakers Would Bear the Brunt of New Fees in Baucus Proposal

Drugmakers marketing products for the elderly probably will face the highest annual fees under a $2.3 billion annual program designed to help pay for Sen. Max Baucus’ (D-Mont.) healthcare overhaul legislation, Jack Calfee, an American Enterprise Institute economist who studies the drug industry and the FDA, said, adding that drugmakers could offset the effect by raising prices. The America’s Healthy Future Act, released Wednesday on Capitol Hill, would give the Treasury secretary the authority to assess annual fees for drugmakers based on the amount of sales of branded prescription drugs sold to Medicare, Medicaid, Veterans Health Administration and Tricare.
Drug Industry Daily