AARP Applauds Energy and Commerce Committee for Action on CREATES Act and the Protecting Consumer Access to Generic Drugs Act of 2019

The following is a statement from AARP Executive Vice President and Chief Advocacy & Engagement Officer Nancy LeaMond on the approval of two bills endorsed by AARP: Creating and Restoring Equal Access to Equivalent Samples (CREATES) Act (H.R. 965) and the Protecting Consumer Access to Generic Drugs Act of 2019 (H.R. 1499).

“AARP thanks the House Energy and Commerce Committee for approving the bipartisan CREATES Act, sponsored by Representatives David Cicilline (D-RI), Jim Sensenbrenner (R-WI), Peter Welch (D-VT), and David B. McKinley (R-WV). The CREATES Act closes loopholes to stop drug companies from blocking the development of lower-cost generic drugs.

“AARP also thanks the Committee for moving forward on the Protecting Consumer Access to Generic Drugs Act of 2019, sponsored by Representative Bobby Rush (D-IL). This bill would ban pay-for-delay deals that allow brand-name drug makers to continue price gouging consumers by blocking access to less expensive generic medicines.

“Brand-name drug companies want to stifle generic competition to protect their monopolies and profits. AARP believes that eliminating these deliberate anticompetitive behaviors will result in a more robust generic drug market and greater savings for both patients and taxpayers. The Congressional Budget Office estimated that legislation such as the CREATES Act could save taxpayers more than $3 billion over a decade, and the FTC estimated pay-for-delay deals cost consumers and taxpayers $3.5 billion a year.

“AARP applauds the committee and Congressional leaders for standing together in a bipartisan manner to help take real steps to tackle our national crisis of high drug prices. We urge Congress to enact these bills to increase competition and the availability of less expensive generic drugs.”