The second of three hearings on drug pricing planned by the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions will not happen in July as expected, leaving brand drugmakers with another win on the hotly debated topic.
Drug Pricing Hearing In Senate Postponed, Handing Innovators Another Victory
First hearing in Sen. Alexander's committee was dominated by Democrat complaints about Obamacare repeal; now that there's an actual bill to criticize, the next one might have been even worse, but regardless of the reason, the postponement means innovator prices get to stay out of the spotlight once again.

More from Pricing Debate
A Republican think tank suggested variations of the Most Favored Nation and international reference policies in Medicare and Medicaid, as well as tariffs and other trade levers to rebalance drug pricing disparities between US countries and abroad.
Democrats opposed the nomination because they believe Mehmet Oz will not defend Medicaid from spending cuts. His pledge to continue lowering drug costs in Medicare and Medicaid did not offset the concerns.
The UK branded drug industry is calling for adjustments to be made to the UK voluntary scheme framework for branded medicines, after the payment rate increased to 22.9% for 2025. Meanwhile, the generics industry says the scheme is functioning “as intended” and opposes any changes.
An initiative run by health technology appraisal (HTA) bodies in the US, Canada and England is looking at how non-traditional treatment benefits, such as the value of hope and scientific spillover, can inform appraisals and understanding of a product’s value.
More from Market Access
About 3,500 full-time FDA employees are expected to be laid off as part of a restructuring of the Health and Human Services Department and experts questioned whether the cuts could be implemented without harming FDA’s core mission.
A German ordinance implementing the EU Health Technology Assessment Regulation offers little clarity on how far joint clinical assessment reports should be considered by national authorities.
A Republican think tank suggested variations of the Most Favored Nation and international reference policies in Medicare and Medicaid, as well as tariffs and other trade levers to rebalance drug pricing disparities between US countries and abroad.