Medicare — Lanton Law Blog

Bipartisan Congressional Legislation Introduced Seeking Shared Savings Demo Project to Increase Biological/Biosimilar Medicare Access

U.S. Senators Cornyn (R-TX) and Bennet (D-CO) have introduced the Increasing Access to Biosimilars Act also known as S. 1427. The bill seeks to establish a demonstration project to increase access to biosimilar biological products under the Medicare program.

2 Bills, 1 Goal: Lower Drug Prices Through Biosimilars

Just prior to an election season, it is not surprising to see a few bills emerge as potential silver bullets to solve pressing policy issues. The latest issue that has consumed the public for several years is how to lower drug prices. While policymakers have raised a series of threats to the industry, such as having Medicare negotiate drug prices, getting rid of drug rebates, and the specter of importation, none of these threats have yet to materialize into any meaningful legislation. What has remained consistent is the intrigue of biosimilars and whether finding ways to increase their utilization in the market could provide the elusive key to lowering drug costs. Two Congressional bills have recently emerged illustrating this desire.