Pharma's worst nightmare? Leaked Democrat pricing plan calls for negotiations, price index, fines and more

Pharma watchers have been awaiting House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s drug pricing plan, and on Monday the industry got a peek at what Democrats are discussing to lower drug prices. The upshot? If the House leadership gets its way, it would devastate pharma's pricing power. The leaked document is outdated and the proposals could change, a senior aide told The Hill. The industry would put up fierce opposition, and Republicans could well balk, too. But the bullet points offer a glimpse into the talks behind closed doors that could end up out in the open—and on the House floor. In the draft drug pricing plan, published by Bloomberg Business, Democrats suggest authorizing the HHS secretary to negotiate prices for the top 250 drugs that don’t have at least two generic or biosimilar rivals. That would include the industry's biggest sellers, such as AbbVie's behemoth Humira and Merck & Co.'s powerhouse Keytruda. The plan also calls for an international price index to peg pharma’s U.S. prices to the much lower stickers overseas. It would also levy steep fines to keep drugmakers in line and place limits on price hikes, among other things.