Guthrie Introduces Bill to Lower Drug Costs and Protect Innovation

(Washington, D.C. - April 21, 2021) – Congressman Brett Guthrie (KY-02), Republican Leader of the Energy and Commerce Committee’s Health Subcommittee, introduced the Lower Costs, More Cures Act in the U.S. House of Representatives.

The Lower Costs, More Cures Act is made of all bipartisan provisions, and last Congress, more than a dozen solutions from this bill were signed into law.

“I introduced the Lower Costs, More Cures Act to put forward solutions that lower drugs costs for patients while also protecting the innovation we rely on for new treatments and cures,” said Guthrie. “We were able to develop COVID-19 vaccines and therapies in record time thanks to the help of American ingenuity and the environment we have in the U.S. that promotes innovation. Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s partisan drug pricing bill would reverse the progress made on innovation by imposing government price controls that would lead to fewer cures. After Americans, especially our health care heroes, learned firsthand the consequences of relying too much on China for our medical manufacturing, Speaker Pelosi’s bill would make us even more reliant on China. Every single provision in the Lower Costs, More Cures Act is bipartisan. The choice is between Speaker Pelosi’s partisan policies that lead to fewer cures and more dependence on China, or the bipartisan bill I support to lower drug costs that also advances innovation for new treatments and cures and stops Americans from having to subsidize innovation for other developed countries. I look forward to advancing the bipartisan solution to decrease prescription drug costs in Congress.”

The Lower Costs, More Cures Act prevents drug companies from gaming the system to keep lower cost drug alternatives from entering the market. This bill also helps lower costs for Medicare beneficiaries. For seniors who participate in Medicare Part D, there’s a cap on out-of-pocket expenses, which has never been done before. Additionally, this bill makes insulin more affordable for seniors by capping costs for insulin and related supplies, and cancer treatment costs are also reduced by up to half for Medicare beneficiaries.

CLICK HERE for a section-by-section summary of the Lower Costs, More Cures Act 

CLICK HERE for a fact sheet on how Lower Costs, More Cures Act will make insulin more affordable