WASHINGTON, DC (March 11, 2019) –The Association for Accessible Medicines commends the Administration’s efforts to reduce out-of-pocket costs and overall drug spending. However, the proposal to amend the 180-day period of exclusivity for first generics would only weaken this critical incentive for competition and ensure that more non-innovative brand-name drug patents remain in place, delaying the availability of generic medicines for patients. As a result, America’s patients will continue to pay high brand-name drug prices for longer without competition from more affordable FDA-approved generic medicine.
Attribution: Chip Davis, CEO, Association for Accessible Medicines
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Rachel Schwartz
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About AAM
AAM is driven by the belief that access to safe, quality, effective medicine has a tremendous impact on a person’s life and the world around them. Generic and biosimilar medicines improve people’s lives, improving society and the economy in turn. AAM represents the manufacturers and distributors of finished generic pharmaceuticals and biosimilars, manufacturers and distributors of bulk pharmaceutical chemicals, and suppliers of other goods and services to the generic industry. Generic pharmaceuticals are 90 percent of prescriptions dispensed in the U.S. but only 23 percent of total drug spending.
About the Biosimilars Council
The Biosimilars Council, a division of the Association for Accessible Medicines (AAM), works to ensure a positive environment for patient access to biosimilar medicines. The Biosimilars Council is a leading source for information about the safety and efficacy of more affordable alternatives to costly brand biologic medicines. Areas of focus include public and health expert education, strategic partnerships, government affairs, legal affairs and regulatory policy. More information is available at www.biosimilarscouncil.org.