Aug. 25—AARP, a lobbying group representing interests of older Americans, and the AARP Foundation recently filed a brief in a lawsuit brought by Chambers of Commerce, including the Dayton Chamber of Commerce, showing AARP's support for the drug price negotiations in the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022.

"Big drug companies and their allies are fighting furiously to stop Medicare from negotiating drug prices so they can keep charging Americans the highest prices in the world," said William Alvarado Rivera, senior vice president for litigation at AARP Foundation. "Allowing these distractions to derail implementation of the law would not be in the public's interest, especially for older adults who have waited far too long for affordable drug prices. Medicare drug price negotiation represents a historic opportunity to access lifesaving drugs for millions of Americans at a time when they need them the most."

The Dayton Area Chamber of Commerce joined this lawsuit in June challenging the drug price controls enacted through the Inflation Reduction Act, which includes other plaintiffs like the Ohio Chamber of Commerce, the Michigan Chamber of Commerce, and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

List prices for the 25 brand-name drugs with the highest total Medicare Part D spending in 2021 have increased by an average of 226%-or more than tripled-since they first entered the market, a recent AARP report found.

The Inflation Reduction Act will have the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services negotiate prices with drug companies for a limited number of single-source drugs that don't have generic competitors covered under Medicare Part D (starting in 2026) and Part B (starting in 2028).

Under this program, the federal government will negotiate the prices for 10 drugs in 2026, an additional 15 in 2027, another 15 in 2028, and another 20 in 2029 and later years, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation.

Starting this year, there will already be a monthly cap on insulin cost sharing, which took effect Jan. 1 for insulin covered under Medicare Part D and will take effect July 1 for insulin covered under Part B.

Stopping drug negotiations will delay older Americans' access to affordable prescription drugs and cost taxpayers billions, said AARP's brief filed with the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio Western Division.

The lawsuit is a constitutional challenge, saying drug companies are being forced into paying price cuts they didn't negotiate or face a penalty fine.

Price controls lead to shortages and rationing, opponents of drug price negotiations say, meaning there will be less access to new medications and treatments.

The Dayton Area Chamber of Commerce includes more than 2,200 businesses and organizations in a 14-county area surrounding Dayton. The chambers involved in the lawsuit also represent members who would be directly subject to the Inflation Reduction Act's drug price controls, including AbbVie, which is a member of the Dayton Area Chamber and the U.S. Chamber, and markets the drug IMBRUVICA.

IMBRUVICA is a cancer drug used to treat adults with chronic lymphocytic leukemia, small lymphocytic lymphoma, or Waldenström's macroglobulinemia, which are cancers involving white blood cells.

The drug was also one of the top 10 gross annual Part D expenditures for plan year 2021, according to the lawsuit, which cites data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). The government spent $3.15 billion on the drug in 2021, accord to CMS data. The average retail price for IMBRUVICA is approximately $16,390, according to GoodRx.