Data shows that American consumers pay more for prescription drugs than in any other country, and in 2021, the Biden administration’s landmark Executive Order (EO) included a focus on promoting competition in the pharmaceutical industry. While the EO outlined a comprehensive approach to promoting competition and controlling drug prices, the administration left out one critical tool in their toolkit — the FTC’s merger control policy.
Today, the Progressive Policy Institute (PPI) released an analysis suggesting that the administration’s executive order has not fully delivered on the promise of promoting competition in the pharmaceutical sector. The analysis, “Promoting Competition in Pharmaceutical Markets: Is the Biden Executive Order Delivering on the Promise?” focuses on the FTC’s longstanding, controversial pharmaceutical merger policy. It calls out the administration for missing an important opportunity to revisit the FTC’s policy to better promote pharmaceutical competition and bring down prescription drug prices for everyday consumers.
“The Biden administration should deliver on its promise to use a ‘whole-of-government’ approach to promoting competition in the pharma sector,” said report author Diana Moss, Vice President and Director of Competition Policy at PPI. “That means looking to merger control by the FTC as a major tool for preventing harmful consolidation and protecting consumers. But it also means reforming the FTC’s approach to pharma mergers, which has fostered rising concentration in critical drug markets.”
Read and download the full response to the Executive Order here.
The Progressive Policy Institute (PPI) is a catalyst for policy innovation and political reform based in Washington, D.C., with offices in Brussels, Berlin and the United Kingdom. Its mission is to create radically pragmatic ideas for moving America beyond ideological and partisan deadlock. Learn more about PPI by visiting progressivepolicy.org
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Media Contact: Amelia Fox, afox@ppionline.org
