Dear Friends,

In 2016, I had the privilege of voting for the bipartisan 21st Century Cures Act, which was signed into law by President Obama. This act provided critical medical research funding and streamlined the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) medication approval process.

To see the results of the 21st Century Cures Act, we only have to look at the numbers. In 2018, the FDA approved 59 novel drug therapies (therapies that serve previously unmet medical needs) and 810 generic medications. In comparison, in 2016, the FDA approved only 22 novel drug therapies and 630 generic medications.

Since the enactment of the 21st Century Cures Act, the FDA has almost tripled the yearly number of novel drug treatments that have been approved and has significantly increased the yearly number of generic drug approvals. These advancements are critical for Americans suffering from diseases with no known cure.

Liberals, however, have a proposal that I believe would stop this progress and stifle innovation. H.R. 3, the liberal drug bill, would implement government price setting and diminish incentives for companies to invest money in looking for new cures. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has estimated that H.R. 3 would lead to 8-15 potentially life saving drugs not coming to market in the next 10 years. Losing even one new cure is too many for families affected by fatal diseases.

There is no doubt that Americans pay too much for health care and prescription drugs, but socialist government price setting at the cost of new cures for vulnerable Americans is not the answer. Congress must continue to spur innovation and increase competition to drive down the cost of health care and bring cures to American families.

Sincerely,

Representative French Hill

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