Representative Suzanne Harrison proposes the following substitute bill:


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CONCURRENT RESOLUTION ENCOURAGING

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CONGRESSIONAL ACTION ON PRESCRIPTION DRUG PRICES

3     
2020 GENERAL SESSION

4     
STATE OF UTAH

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Chief Sponsor: Suzanne Harrison

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Senate Sponsor: Evan J. Vickers

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8     LONG TITLE
9     General Description:
10          This concurrent resolution urges the United States Congress to address escalating
11     prescription drug prices.
12     Highlighted Provisions:
13          This resolution:
14          ▸     highlights the impacts of prescription drug prices on medication adherence and
15     health outcomes;
16          ▸     highlights the growth in prescription drug spending;
17          ▸     highlights the difference between the prices paid for single-source brand name
18     prescription drugs in the United States and the prices paid for single-source brand
19     name prescription drugs in other countries;
20          ▸     highlights potential Medicare savings;
21          ▸     highlights the inability of the secretary of the United States Department of Health
22     and Human Services to influence Medicare prescription drug prices; and
23          ▸     urges the United States Congress to promote innovative, market-based solutions and
24     take specific steps to address escalating prescription drug prices.
25     Special Clauses:

26          None
27     

28     Be it resolved by the Legislature of the state of Utah, the Governor concurring therein:
29          WHEREAS, at least 49% of Utah adults worry they won't be able to afford the
30     prescription drugs they need;
31          WHEREAS, 29% of Utah adults do not fill a prescription, cut prescribed pills in half,
32     or skip doses;
33          WHEREAS, non-adherence to prescribed drug treatments leads to increased morbidity,
34     mortality, and health system costs;
35          WHEREAS, spending on prescription drugs nationwide has recently grown at more
36     than 2.5 times the rate of inflation;
37          WHEREAS, prices paid for prescription drugs in the United States are often higher than
38     prices paid for prescription drugs in other countries;
39          WHEREAS, one recent study of 79 single-source brand name drugs accounting for
40     40% of Medicare Part D spending showed that the pre-rebate prices charged in the United
41     States are 1.3 to 70.1 times the amounts charged in Canada, the United Kingdom, and Japan;
42          WHEREAS, the study concluded that the overall, post-rebate cost of those 79 drugs
43     was 3.2 to 4.1 times higher in the United States than the three other countries;
44          WHEREAS, the study concluded that manufacturer discounts would have to more than
45     double, to 78% of the wholesale acquisition cost, to eliminate the price differential between the
46     United States and the other three countries;
47          WHEREAS, if post-rebate prices paid for those 79 drugs in the United States were
48     reduced to equal the average post-rebate cost in two or more of the other three countries,
49     Medicare spending on those drugs would be reduced by 67%, or $37.9 billion in 2018;
50          WHEREAS, in many countries other than the United States, the prices paid to drug
51     manufacturers are based on the prices paid in other countries;
52          WHEREAS, the 2003 Medicare Modernization Act, which established the Medicare
53     Part D drug benefit, allows Medicare prescription drug plans to individually negotiate with
54     drug manufacturers and pharmacies but prohibits the secretary of the United States Department
55     of Health and Human Services from becoming involved in negotiations, establishing
56     formularies, or instituting price structures;

57          WHEREAS, Congress is considering multiple bills that would enable the secretary to
58     engage in meaningful negotiations with drug manufacturers; and
59          WHEREAS, at least one of those bills has the potential to reduce Medicare prescription
60     drug spending, which totaled nearly $130 billion in 2016, by nearly $80 billion annually by
61     2027:
62          NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Legislature of the state of Utah, the
63     Governor concurring therein, urges the United States Congress to promote innovative,
64     market-based solutions to escalating prescription drug prices.
65          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature and the Governor urge Congress to
66     consider solutions like Civica Rx, a Utah-based nonprofit drug manufacturer providing a steady
67     supply of generic drugs to over 1,200 hospitals nationwide at a fraction of the commercial cost.
68          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature and the Governor urge Congress to
69     promote price transparency at all levels of the prescription drug supply chain, enact patent
70     reform, safely accelerate the approval process for new drugs, promote competition, remove
71     barriers to value-based purchasing, and provide Medicare with the policy tools necessary to
72     negotiate significant reductions in the prices it pays for prescription drugs.
73          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this resolution be provided to Utah's
74     congressional delegation and the majority and minority leaders of the United States Senate and
75     the United States House of Representatives.