E&C Committee approves bill requiring companies to justify drug price increases

The House Energy & Commerce Committee approved by voice vote legislation that would require drug manufacturers to provide justification for pending drug price increases.

H.R. 2296, known as the More Efficient Tools to Realize Information for Consumers (METRIC) Act, would require drug manufacturers to submit documentation to HHS no more than 30 days before a planned increase in a drug's WAC that includes a description of and an explanation for the price increase. Manufacturers need to provide historical price increases for a drug since its approval; how much it has spent on manufacturing and R&D for a drug, including the percentage from federal funding; marketing and advertising costs for the drug; and total revenue and profits for that drug...