Illinois group pushes drug pricing bill opposed by business groups

(The Center Square) – An effort is underway to work at controlling prescription drug prices in Illinois, but there is a stack of industry opposition.

Citizen Action Illinois, a progressive policy and political coalition, is pushing for measures at the statehouse to establish a prescription drug affordability board, or PDAB.

“Creating a prescription drug affordability board in Illinois can save over $190 million in just one year for only the first 10 drugs Medicare has negotiated,” said Citizen Action Illinois policy manager Julia Warheit.

Warheit said the PDAB would adopt the federal Medicare maximum fair price as the statewide upper limit, extending those savings to consumers who are not on Medicaid.

“When Medicare negotiates a lower price, Illinois gets that lower price, too. It’s that simple,” she said during a news conference in Springfield Tuesday.

In Colorado, Julia Warheit said such a board is saving consumers $32 million in one year alone for one particular d...