WASHINGTON — Drug makers and their lobbyists are struggling to agree on a strategy that would convince President Trump to back off a highly controversial drug pricing policy that he vowed to enact on Monday.
This week, the group, the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America convened three calls with member companies to discuss how to respond to an ultimatum that Trump laid out in July. He said then that the industry would have to come up with a way to significantly lower drug prices before August 24, or his administration would enact a policy, despised by the industry, that would tie what the U.S. pays for drugs to what other countries pay.
PhRMA held calls on Monday, Wednesday and Thursday, according to two registered lobbyists and one official from a member drug company. The calls didn’t go well: the roughly 30 major drug makers that PhRMA represents couldn’t agree on a slate of policies to propose, or even whether to offer anything at all. At least three member companies oppose suggesting anything at all, according to three lobbyists.
let AMERICA pay for what other country’s get at a DEEP % DISCOUNT… how about dollar cost averaging the top 10 country’s they sell the product to and use that as the COST BASIS…. this way every one carries the freight ?