From CNBC:

Senators Issuing Subpoenas for Pharmaceutical CEOs Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee has asked CEOs from Johnson & Johnson, Merck, and Bristol Myers Squibb to testify regarding high U.S. drug prices on Thursday. Roughly 9 million Americans did not take their prescribed medications in 2021 because of high costs, and U.S. drug prices are more than 2.5 times those in other high-income nations.

CEO Testimonies and Drug Costs The CEOs from Johnson & Johnson, Merck, and Bristol Myers Squibb testified that the U.S. healthcare system costs are too high, but emphasized the need to balance affordable prices with maintaining innovation and drug development. The CEOs also highlighted the massive investments their companies make in research and development to create new medications for patients.

Report on Drug Costs and Patent Strategies The Senate committee’s report showed that the annual cost of Keytruda is $191,000 in the U.S., $89,000 in Germany, and $44,000 in Japan. The report also revealed that the three companies are using various strategies to preserve their pricing power, including filing multiple patents on the same medicine to extend exclusivity and increase list prices for new drugs.

Seniors Suing to Halt Drug Price Negotiations J&J, Merck, and Bristol Myers Squibb are suing to stop the first round of Medicare drug price negotiations, which will set new prices in 2026 for expensive medications like Eliquis, Stelara, and Januvia. The negotiations are a key policy under the Inflation Reduction Act aiming to make costly medications more affordable for seniors.



Read more: Merck, J&J, Bristol Myers Squibb CEOs face Senate drug price hearing