Shelby Review

Rep. Doug Wozniak (R-Shelby Township) recently introduced legislation intended to help Michigan residents by addressing the increasing costs of prescription medications.

The bipartisan plan would require drug manufacturers to provide product pricing information to the Michigan Department of Insurance and Financial Services, which would enable policymakers to better understand what is driving increases in medication costs, according to the Michigan House Republicans website. 

"By holding everyone within the drug supply chain accountable, we can help protect consumers from inflated prices, making their prescription medications more affordable," Wozniak said, according to Michigan House Republicans.

Rep. Douglas Wozniak | Michigan House Republicans

Wozniak pointed out the continuing increases in prescription medication prices over the last five years -- which he characterized as "astronomical" -- as motivation for the effort to create greater transparency in what drives those increases.

"People have been forced to make tough sacrifices to afford their medications, or worse, they’ve skipped buying them altogether and are going without," he told Michigan House Republicans.

Wozniak's bill would also address inappropriate efforts to influence providers. His bill would still allow drug samples to be given out to providers, while prohibiting the drug manufacturers from giving gifts to prescribers in excess of $63 annually.

"Prohibiting drug manufacturers from giving out exorbitant incentives to practitioners for using or prescribing their drugs will force prescribers to use the drugs that are actually best for their patients," Wozniak said, according to Michigan House Republicans. "This will also prevent prescribers from being influenced by drug manufacturers that give a large gift."

Among the pieces of legislation that make up the bipartisan package are requirements for hospitals to post online the cost of any procedures they perform, a prohibition on insurers requiring a copay from patients that is higher than the cost of the medication they receive, and a requirement for insurers to count all drug rebates received for a drug in calculating a patient's maximum out-of-pocket costs or plan deductible.