Progressive senators criticize Chamber of Commerce for ‘dark campaign’ against marching rights

A trio of progressive senators are demanding to know why the Chamber of Commerce launched a coalition earlier this year to oppose a proposed White House rule that would allow it to use marching rights to reduce drug costs.

Democratic Senators Elizabeth Warren (Mass.), Jeff Merkley (Oreg.), and Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) wrote to Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Suzanne P. Clark asking why her organization formed the “Business Alliance to Stop Innovation Confiscation (BASIC) Coalition” in March.

The coalition’s explicitly stated goal is “to thwart the Biden administration’s attempt to exploit the historic, bipartisan Bayh-Dole Act as a covert method to impose price controls using ‘march-in’ rights to seize commercial patents.”

In December, the Biden administration unveiled a proposed framework that would define how to enforce its entry rights under the Bayh-Dole Act, allowing the government to issue its own license for drugs developed with taxpayer funding. The Chamber classified this proposal as a “threat to progress”.

In their letter to Clark on Wednesday, the senators called the formation of the coalition a “mistake.”

“This proposal – which has not yet been finalized – is an important step forward. It clarifies that taxpayers have a protection when drug manufacturers charge exorbitant prices for drugs that were developed with public funds,” the lawmakers wrote. “Ultimately, if the administration were to finalize this proposal, it could “have profound implications for access to medicines and drug pricing for patients and consumers.”

“But instead of working to support thousands of its members who will benefit from efforts to end drug company profiteering, the Chamber has opened a shadowy campaign – led by retired judge Paul Michel – to ‘thwart the drug pricing initiatives of the White House'”. they added.

Progressive lawmakers argued that the coalition’s agenda went directly against its stated goal of “expanding[ing] access and improvement[ing] the affordability of high-quality health care for all Americans” and would harm consumers and businesses large and small.

Clark was asked to answer how the Chamber made the decision to form the coalition, whether any analysis was conducted on how marching rights would affect its members and how many of its members would benefit from reduced health care costs.

The senators also wanted to know why they chose Michel to lead the coalition and which members of the Chamber donated to the campaign in support of the BASIC coalition.

When reached for comment, a House spokesperson said in a statement: “The Biden administration’s proposal to seize the intellectual property rights of American companies poses a threat to progress and risks fostering a hostile environment for innovation and U.S. intellectual property rights.”

“That’s why the Chamber is working with entrepreneurs and advocates to protect the public-private partnerships that have helped the U.S. continue to be the world leader in innovation,” the spokesperson added.

This story originally appeared on thehill.com read the full story