Government Healthcare Policy, Business and Technology

FDA chief says agency will take action to lower drug prices

The Hill: The Food and Drug Administration will take action to deal with the rising cost of prescription drugs, the agency’s head said on Monday.

FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb said high drug prices are “a public health concern that FDA should address.”

Gottlieb said the agency will take steps to speed up the regulatory approvals of certain kinds of generic alternatives to pricey “complex” drugs. The goal is to increase competition, which could help to slow the growth or even lower the price of prescription drugs.

“[A]ny steps we can take to encourage the development of generic competitors to complex drugs will have an outsized impact on access, and prices,” Gottlieb said in a blog post.

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