President Donald Trump's White House is drafting an executive order designed to lower drug prices, according to a BioCentury report.
Here are five things to know:
1. The executive order is expected to direct agencies to use value-based contracts for drug purchases, according to the report. The order will also address trade policies "that enhance the intellectual property rights of American pharmaceutical companies."
2. The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee began hearings earlier this week on drug pricing — the first of three — and heard several proposals to rein in drug prices. One of the proposals included negotiating the amount Medicare Part D pays for specialty drugs or reference pricing.
3. Avalere Health President Dan Mendelson presented about value-based purchasing and outcomes-based contracts at the hearing and discussed how to incorporate pharmaceuticals into the contracts.
4. The Senate committee's next hearing in July will focus on the process pharmaceutical companies take to bring new products to market; the third will be in the fall and focused on patient access to affordable drug therapies.
5. The hearing also included Paul Howard, director of health policy at the Manhattan Institute, arguing drugs were already affordable in the country but advocated for outcomes-based contracts that would continue to support innovation.