On the recordSeptember 7, 2016
This is the final amendment to the bill, which will not kill the bill or send it back to committee. If adopted, the bill will immediately proceed to final passage as amended. The purpose of my motion is simple. It says that the restrictions in the underlying bill do not apply to settlement agreements that ultimately result in lower prices for lifesaving medical devices. Mr. Speaker, Americans are hurting across this country. Far too often, there have been companies that have sought to profit off of the most vulnerable among us through monopoly-like action and power. When that happens, Mr. Speaker, particularly when it comes to medical devices, it is the Federal Government's role to ensure that consumers are protected, to ensure that all Americans have access to devices they need, particularly when it is a matter of life and death. In my opinion, we have to look no further than the actions of the maker of EpiPens, the device every parent of a child with severe allergies is aware of. When a child goes into shock, this is the device that will save his or her life. Unfortunately, EpiPen's maker, Mylan, has chosen to systematically inflate its profits over the past several years without reinvesting those profits for further business activities such as research and development. Instead, we have seen CEO pay raised astronomically, and quarterly profits skyrocket, all off the backs of vulnerable Americans. This is wrong.…
