Legislative Tracker

Prescription Drug Price Relief Act of 2025

This bill requires the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to review brand-name drugs annually for excessive pricing and, if a drug is found to be priced excessively, to void any exclusivity granted to its sponsor.

Specifically, HHS must review all brand-name drug prices at least annually and upon petition. If any such drugs are found to be excessively priced, HHS must (1) void any government-granted exclusivity; (2) issue open, nonexclusive licenses for the drugs; and (3) expedite the review of corresponding applications for generic drugs and biosimilar biological products. HHS must also create a public database with its determinations for each drug.

An entity accepting an open, nonexclusive license under these provisions must pay a reasonable royalty to the holder of the relevant patent or approved new drug application, and must price the generic drug or biosimilar below the excessive rate.

Under the bill, a price is considered excessive if the domestic average manufacturing price exceeds the median price for the drug in Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, and Japan. If a price does not meet this criteria, or if pricing information is unavailable in at least three of these countries, the price is still considered excessive if it is higher than reasonable in light of specified factors, including development cost, revenue, and the size of the affected patient population.

The bill also requires drug manufacturers to report specified financial information for brand-name drugs, including research and advertising expenditures.

Expanding Health Care Options for First Responders Act

This bill establishes a Medicare buy-in option for certain qualifying first responders.

Specifically, the bill allows first responders aged 50 to 64 to enroll in Medicare if they are retired or otherwise separated from service due to a disability. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) must determine enrollment periods and set premiums for the buy-in option established under the bill, in accordance with specified requirements. The CMS must also award grants to states and nonprofit organizations for outreach and enrollment activities relating to the buy-in option.

Repair Abuses of MSP Payments Act or the RAMP Act

This bill restricts the private right of action against insurance plans that do not provide appropriate primary payment in cases in which Medicare is a secondary payer.

Current law allows for a private right of action against primary plans that do not provide appropriate primary payment in cases in which Medicare is a secondary payer; this provision applies to group health plans, workers' compensation plans, automobile or liability insurance plans, and no-fault insurance plans. The bill limits this provision to group health plans.