NASHP Drug Pricing Proposal: A Step in the Right Direction

At the heart of the COVID-19 pandemic is a long-lasting question about access to healthcare in America. For years, exorbitant drug prices have caused severe problems for American patients. The ineffective system of determining drug costs, solely influenced by competition in the free market, leaves roughly 25% of Americans unable to afford prescription drugs1. Importantly, this emphasizes the urgent need for structural reform in this area. Interestingly, there has been a renewed political will to address this crisis. In May 2018, the Trump Administration released a blueprint to “put American patients first” and, in the report, “high list prices” was the first challenge identified by Health and Human Services2. Six states have already enacted laws that allow for Canadian drug importation but await for federal approval3. These initiatives at the state and federal level, while not amounting to formal legal action, set the stage for paradigm-shifting policies to be passed. The National Academy for State Health Policy (NASHP), a nonpartisan group of policy makers in state governments, represent a key actor for drug price reform4. Recently, they published a model law to match Canadian drug prices for the American market5. The model accounts for the 250 most expensive drugs in the state and proposes setting an upper limit defined by the lowest price found across Canada’s 4 most populous provinces5. In doing so, this aims to decrease drug prices and improve drug accessibility. While not flawless, this model provides an effective starting point to regulate drug prices in America and addresses key critics.