Assembly Health Committee Approves Bills Related To Rx Drug Costs, Availability, Safety

The Assembly Health Committee on Tuesday approved several bills that seek to make prescription drugs less expensive, more available and safer for state residents, the Riverside Press-Enterprise reports (Beeman/Miller, Riverside Press-Enterprise, 4/12). The bills include:

AB 71: The legislation would establish the California Drug Safety Watch, which would require the construction of a public database of adverse prescription drug reactions;
AB 72: The legislation would require pharmaceutical companies to submit to the state the results of all studies on the safety and efficacy of prescription drugs sold in California (California Health Line, 1/10);
AB 73: The legislation would establish a state Web site to help patients purchase lower-cost prescription drugs from pharmacies in Canada, Britain and Ireland (California Health Line, 2/22);
AB 74: The legislation would establish a hotline that state residents could call for information about state and federal prescription drug discount programs;
AB 75: The legislation would establish a prescription drug discount program for low-income state residents; and
AB 76: The legislation would place the responsibilities of several state agencies under a new state Office of Pharmaceutical Purchasing to purchase prescription drugs.

According to the Press-Enterprise, the bills represent part of a broader effort by state lawmakers to address the increased cost of medications, the large number of state residents without prescription drug coverage and concerns about FDA oversight of treatments after they reach the market (Riverside Press-Enterprise, 4/12). This is part of the California Healthline Daily Edition, a summary of health policy coverage from major news organizations. Sign up for an email subscription.