Bowling Green Today

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Brett Guthrie, along with Congressman Greg Murphy and Congressman Don Davis, has introduced the EPIC Act, a legislation aimed at changing the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) to ensure equal treatment of small and large molecule drugs. The goal of this legislation is to provide patients with the best opportunity to gain access to life-saving therapies.

In a statement, Congressman Guthrie emphasized the need for the EPIC Act, stating, "We are at the cusp of a revolution in health care, thanks to the innovation happening right here in the U.S. Patients and their families rely on these life-saving products for a better quality of life and for more time with their families. Congress should be incentivizing investments in and development of cutting-edge therapies, not penalizing innovators for helping to drive real change in our health care system. The EPIC Act will ensure these life-saving products reach patients without picking winners and losers like the IRA currently does."

Currently, the Inflation Reduction Act gives the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) the authority to negotiate drug prices. However, there is a discrepancy in the timelines for small and large molecule drugs, commonly referred to as the "pill penalty." Small molecule drugs are subject to negotiation at 7 years after coming to market, with the negotiated prices going into effect at 9 years. On the other hand, large molecule drugs have a timeline of 11 years for negotiation and the prices go into effect at 13 years after market entry.

This discrepancy in timelines can potentially pick winners and losers, which ultimately harms patients the most. It forces innovators to make difficult decisions about where to invest in their pipelines, leading to a lack of access to effective cures for debilitating diseases such as cancers and other neurodegenerative conditions.

The EPIC Act aims to address this critical issue by aligning the statutory timeline for negotiation of small molecule drugs with the 11-year timeline for large molecule drugs. This change will ensure that patients have access to more convenient and effective treatments for various diseases.

Congressman Guthrie, along with Congressmen Murphy and Davis, are leading the bipartisan effort to advance this bill. They are committed to working with their colleagues to ensure that the EPIC Act becomes law and that patients have access to life-saving therapies without the current inequities imposed by the IRA.

This legislation is a crucial step towards incentivizing innovation and investment in cutting-edge therapies, ultimately benefiting patients and their families who rely on these life-saving products for a better quality of life. With the EPIC Act, the hope is to create a fair and balanced system that supports the development of life-saving drugs and ensures that all patients have equal access to these therapies.