Big Pharma’s massive lobbying campaign and advertising offensive against Democrats’ drug pricing plan saved the industry nearly half a trillion dollars. That represents a return of more than 1,700 times the investment the drug industry has made on lobbying Congress this year.
This outcome illustrates why industry groups are willing to throw ungodly sums of money at influencing Washington lawmakers. While spending hundreds of millions on lobbying and advocacy efforts might seem exorbitant, it’s nothing compared to the hundreds of billions these business interests stand to lose if legislative decisions don’t go their way.
In September, House Democrats estimated that the drug pricing provisions in their Build Back Better agenda reconciliation bill would save $700 billion over a decade. Democrats’ compromise drug plan — negotiated by pharmaceutical industry favorites Sen. Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona, Rep. Scott Peters of California, and Rep. Kurt Schrader of Oregon — would only save $250 billion during that same time, according to the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, a pro-austerity think tank. The difference equals $450 billion in savings.
According to data from OpenSecrets, the pharmaceutical and health products industries have spent $263 million on lobbying in Washington so far this year. Dark money groups with ties to Big Pharma have run misleading ad campaigns promoting the Democrats who worked to gut the party’s drug pricing measure, and they have also spent millions on ads attacking the entire concept of allowing the government to negotiate drug prices — an idea that is broadly popular and one that many other countries have implemented.
In a new tax return obtained by The Daily Poster, Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) disclosed donating another $2.7 million in 2020 to Center Forward, a dark money group that’s spent at least $1.2 million touting Sinema in Arizona in recent months. PhRMA, a powerful drug lobbying group, contributed $7.2 million to Center Forward from 2016-20, accounting for more than a quarter of its revenue. PhRMA brought in $573 million in revenue last year.
The lobbying and related advocacy blitz by Big Pharma to boost allied lawmakers and oppose Democrats’ drug pricing measure may seem staggering, especially if you live in a state or district flooded with their ads. But in total, the effort will end up costing less than 0.1 percent of the $450 billion the industry will get to keep thanks to corporate Democrats’ handiwork. And drug lobbyists are still working to chip away at the legislation further and block provisions that would limit future price hikes.
Of course, there is some chance that Democrats won’t manage to pass their Build Back Better bill at all, despite negotiating the legislation since March. But if the bill does become law, voters may not even begin to see any savings from the drug pricing provisions until after the 2022 midterm elections, when Democrats could lose control of Congress — and some other changes wouldn’t take effect until after the 2024 presidential election.
As Politico noted on Monday, “Penalties on drugmakers that hike prices faster than inflation and a new $35-per-month cap on insulin won’t begin until 2023. A $2,000 cap for all out-of-pocket drug spending for seniors won’t be implemented until 2024, and the lower prices Medicare will negotiate with pharmaceutical companies for some of the most expensive drugs won’t be available until 2025 — with a full phase-in coming in 2028.”
This newsletter relies on readers pitching in to support our journalism. If you like this story, please support The Daily Poster's work.
"As Politico noted on Monday, “Penalties on drugmakers that hike prices faster than inflation and a new $35-per-month cap on insulin won’t begin until 2023. A $2,000 cap for all out-of-pocket drug spending for seniors won’t be implemented until 2024, and the lower prices Medicare will negotiate with pharmaceutical companies for some of the most expensive drugs won’t be available until 2025 — with a full phase-in coming in 2028.”
It doesn't look like any of the drug pricing is going to take effect until 2023. If the Republicans take control of the house and Senate, in the 2022 midterms what's to stop the Republicans from killing these drug pricing measures before they even start?
They should rename it Build Back Bitter because that's the taste it will leave for years to come.
Without a doubt. that Or Build Back (Better than nothing), That seems to be the way that Biden is treating it when he had that CNN town hall a few months ago and he was saying that when you have only 50 democratic senators everyone is President. He was acting like there was nothing he could do besides compromise with Manchin and Sinema. He also said that there were still enough good things left in the bill, like it was better than nothing. But with all the delays in the drug pricing, lack of taxes on the wealthy, no coverage for dental and vision there really isnt much left to it if it even gets passed
Just in time for the Republicans to take over the presidency and both houses of Congress again. Unfortunately, third parties will be ignored by the press and as a result the Democrats will move further to the right. This is not a way to progress as already demonstrated when Reagan took over in 1980.
They use Manchin and Sinema was (willing) human shields. Look at the vote on min wage hike, with 8 Dem senators voting against. I suspect it's that way with a lot of measures, including public option or drug price reduction. You have a bunch of D senators who get to pretend they're for things they really aren't for, since there's always a Joe (Lieberman, Manchin) and now a Sinema to take the hit. I suspect Sinema is angling for a lucrative private sector job and Manchin has grifted just enough to be ready to hand his seat over to a Republican pal.