WASHINGTON, D.C. —Today, the Senate Judiciary Committee advanced a slate of bipartisan bills to lower the cost of prescription drugs, including several sponsored by Senator Peter Welch (D-Vt.).  

“We’re facing an affordability crisis right now, and the cost of health care and prescription drugs is adding to the pain. The importance of lowering the cost of drugs, helping more generics enter the market, and taking on pharmaceutical middlemen is something we can all find common ground on,” said Senator Welch. “I’m pleased to see our bipartisan bills advance out of the Judiciary Committee this morning. Vermont patients, seniors and families will benefit from these commonsense bills, and I urge my colleagues in the Senate to join us in passing this legislation.” 

The Judiciary Committee advanced the following bipartisan bills: 

• The Prescription Pricing for the People Act, which would help provide transparency of Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs) by directing the Federal Trade Commission to examine and provide policy recommendations on improving price transparency, the effects of consolidation on pricing, and other abuse behaviors of PBMs which raise the price of drugs. This bipartisan bill is led by Senators Grassley and Cantwell, and sponsored by Sens. Peter Welch (D-Vt.), Roger Marshall (R-Kan.), Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.), Chris Coons (D-Del.), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) and James Lankford (R-Okla.). 
• The Interagency Patent Coordination and Improvement Act, which would create a task force between the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to improve the pharmaceutical patent process and provide more visibility for patent approvals. This bipartisan bill is led by Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Ranking Member Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), and sponsored by Sens. Peter Welch (D-Vt.), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), and Chris Coons (D-Del.). 
• The Stop Significant and Time-Wasting Abuse Limiting Legitimate Innovation of New Generics (Stop STALLING) Act, which would ban pharmaceutical companies from submitting baseless petitions to the FDA to try to interfere with a competitor’s application for market approval.  This bipartisan bill is led by Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and Chairman Grassley (R-Iowa), and sponsored by Senators Peter Welch (D-Vt.), Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.) and Ranking Member Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) 
• The Preserve Access to Affordable Generics and Biosimilars Act, which would authorize the FTC to initiate proceedings against parties to any agreement resolving or settling a patent infringement claim in connection with the sale of a drug or biological product. This bipartisan bill is led by Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and Chairman Grassley (R-Iowa), and sponsored by Ranking Member Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) and Senators Peter Welch (D-Vt.), Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), and Mark Kelly (R-Ariz.). 

Additionally, Senator Welch supported the following bipartisan bills:  

• A bill to amend the Federal Trade Commission Act to prohibit product hopping and for other purposes, which prohibits branded drug manufacturers from engaging in an anticompetitive practice called “product hopping” and helps generics and biosimilars enter the market. This bill was sponsored by Senators John Cornyn (R-Texas), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Chair Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), and Ranking Member Dick Durbin (D-Ill.). 
• A bill to amend Title 35, United States Code, to address the infringement of patents that claim biological products, and for other purposes, which would limit (in certain instances) the number of patents that a manufacturer can assert in a lawsuit against a company attempting to sell a biosimilar. This bill would lower drug prices by helping biosimilars enter the market, and is sponsored by Senators John Cornyn (R-Texas), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Chair Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), and Ranking Member Dick Durbin (D-Ill.). 

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