RETIREE LETTER TO SENATORS
Subject: Please Vote to Protect Patients, Medicare Part D, and Medical Innovation
Dear Senator [INSERT NAME]:
As a Merck retiree, I believe achieving bipartisan health care reform that builds on the best of our current public and private health care infrastructure is critically important for patients.
However, I am concerned that as the Senate considers health care reform legislation, amendments will be offered that would undermine, not improve, health care in our country. Specifically, I am concerned about amendments that would harm Medicare Part D, patient safety and innovation. This could ultimately jeopardize patient access to high quality, affordable care.
Please vote NO on any attempts on the Senate floor to:
· Impose a Medicaid-type rebate on drugs used by dual-eligible beneficiaries in Medicare Part D;
· Allow for importation of foreign, non-Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved drugs;
· Alter the Senate HELP Committee’s bipartisan policy of 12 years of data protection for innovator biologics.
Imposing Medicaid-type price controls on Medicare Part D could lead to unintended consequences, including higher premiums by as much as 20 percent, according to government estimates. Please vote against any amendments to expand price controls to Medicare Part D, including through new rebates.
Opening our borders to imported drugs could increase the flow of counterfeit drugs into the U.S. and harm patients. Furthermore, there is no guarantee that importing medicines will actually save consumers money. Under both Democratic and Republican Administrations, the Secretaries of Health & Human Services (HHS) and the FDA have consistently opposed opening our borders to these dangerous drugs. Please vote against any amendments to allow importation of possibly harmful pharmaceuticals and please vote to require that importation be certified by the HHS Secretary as safe and saving money for consumers before going into effect.
A regulatory pathway for approval of biosimilar products with a data protection period of 12 years, as included in the HELP Committee-passed bill, is critical to support and incentivize research and development of new medicines. Anything less would undermine innovation and research, could delay discovery and cures, and could cost our country innovative research jobs that move overseas where incentives for innovation are stronger. Please vote against any amendments that weaken the incentives for innovation, including limiting data exclusivity for biologics.
I ask you to vote NO on amendments that threaten the Medicare Part D benefit, patient safety, and innovation. Thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely,
Retiree Name