Biopharma wants another bite at the donut hole

Lobbyists for the biopharmaceutical industry are scrambling to use a must-pass spending bill as a vehicle to roll back provisions in a recently enacted law that would impose tens of billions of dollars in costs on drug companies.

To avoid a government shutdown, Congress must pass a FY18 budget bill by March 23. Advocates for policies ranging from gun control to opioid abuse -- and reducing pharma’s portion of the Medicare Part D donut hole discount -- are working overtime to get their priorities incorporated into the bill. ...