CBO: Generics Bill Would Save US $4.8 Billion

The US Congressional Budget Office has estimated that a current bill to prevent brand-name pharmaceutical companies from paying generic producers to delay the release of generic drugs into the market could save the US budget some $4.8 billion over 10 years.

The bill would treat “pay-for-delay” arrangements as illegal and would give the authority to the Federal Trade Commission to stop them. The bill, the Preserve Access to Affordable Generic Drugs Act (S. 27), is sponsored by Senators Charles Grassley (Republican, Iowa) and Herb Kohl (Democrat, Wisconsin).

The senators have proposed the bill as deficit reduction measure for the government. In addition, the CBO estimates that the bill would cut drug expenditures by about $11 million over the decade.

The CBO study is here [pdf].