A chief lobbyist from the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, the leading drug lobby in Washington, D.C., says one positive idea coming out of Hillary Clinton's drug pricing plan is her proposal to cap out-of-pocket drug costs for consumers.
"I think we have to acknowledge that some patients do face challenges in accessing their medicines," Stephen Ubl, president and CEO of PhRMA, told STAT in an interview.
However, a spokeswoman told STAT the drug lobby has not officially taken a side on specific proposals. PhRMA denounced Ms. Clinton's drug proposals when she released them last fall, according to the report.
Mr. Ubl's comments highlight that health insurers, not pharmaceutical companies, will likely be the ones to carry the financial burden of high drug costs, as Ms. Clinton's plan caps out-of-pocket drug costs for consumers at $250 a month, after which health insurers would pick up the tab, according to STAT.
In the interview, Mr. Ubl stressed that he neither supports Medicare negotiating drug prices nor importing drugs from other countries to drive prices down, which are two other policies Ms. Clinton and Republican frontrunner Donald Trump have endorsed, according to the report.
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