House OKs drug-marketing disclosure

AUGUSTA – Hoping to put more pressure on prescription drug companies to make their prices more affordable, the Maine House endorsed a bill Monday requiring drug firms to disclose more about their promotional costs.

A bill that received preliminary approval by a 76-57 vote would oblige companies that manufacture or label drugs sold in Maine to submit annual reports on how much they spend marketing, advertising and promoting their products.

Much of the information would be available to the public as a way to control costs that are said to inflate the cost of prescription medicines.

Rep. Nancy Sullivan said she and other politicians must disclose where they get campaign money and how they spend it, and “I think the pharmaceutical companies need to be held to the same standard.

“We’re asking here for companies [to] put out your information, disclose it, and let public perception decide if you’re spending your money wisely,” the Biddeford Democrat said during a lengthy debate.

Supporters also contended that consumers who are targeted by ads ask their doctors for certain medicines even though less-expensive alternatives are available.

Rep. David Bowles, R-Sanford, said the disclosure requirements go far beyond what’s required of hundreds of other industries that receive taxpayer assistance.

“This is misguided,” said Bowles. “It’s not going to help the people we’re trying to help.”

The bill, which faces further House and Senate votes, is one of several designed to drive down runaway drug prices, which hit the elderly especially hard.

Another bill approved by the House on Monday would require that consumers paying out-of-pocket be notified when they have to pay a higher price for a brand-name drug made by a company not participating in the Maine Rx program.

A federal appeals court last week upheld the law creating Maine’s Rx program, which is seen by many as a model for other states looking for ways to control prescription drug prices. A pharmaceutical industry group had challenged the law’s legality.

The Rx law allows the state to negotiate lower drug prices for uninsured consumers. The state also can impose price controls in three years if negotiations fail to bring about significant price reductions.

Supporters of several drug price-control bills still before lawmakers took turns defending their proposals at a news conference on the State House steps after votes on the first two bills Monday.

House Majority Leader Patrick Colwell, D-Gardiner, said Monday’s action bolsters the Rx law.

House Speaker Michael Saxl, D-Portland, is sponsoring Gov. Angus King’s bill aimed at providing prescription drug coverage for 225,000 people who lack coverage. It seeks 25 percent discounts for people with incomes less than or up to 300 percent of the federal poverty level.

Another proposal would expand the number of elderly Mainers eligible for a low-cost drug program. A bill to permit the state to participate in any drug reimportation program the federal government authorizes awaits a final OK.