WASHINGTON — House Republicans have drafted drug-shortage legislation that differs significantly from the approach Democrats propose to stem shortages of chemotherapies and other critical medicines that hospitals typically use.
Republicans on the House Energy and Commerce Committee are focused on what they say are the underlying economic reasons for shortages. Hospitals band together to negotiate drug prices, and makers of generic injectables say those group purchasing organizations can drive prices down so low that they stop making certain drugs or can’t afford to maintain manufacturing facilities, which then leads to manufacturing interruptions.
It’s not clear whether Democrats oppose the Republican proposals. A spokesperson for Rep. Frank Pallone (D-N.J.), the ranking Democrat on Energy and Commerce, said Democrats were not privy to the Republican proposals in advance and have not had time to assess them. But Democrats have been critical of Republicans’ choice to separate the drug shortage policies from a must-pass pandemic-preparedness bill — they’d rather combine the two efforts to increase its chances of success.