{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.grassley.senate.gov/news/news-releases/grassley-welcomes-ftc-commitment-protecting-consumers-drug-company", "Grassley Welcomes FTC Commitment to Protecting Consumers from Drug Company Anticompetitive Behavior Leading to Higher Drug Prices", "2016-11-18", "2016", "2016-11", "Republican", "House", "IA", "Charles Grassley", "G000386", "www.grassley.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "WASHINGTON -- Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley today welcomed a commitment from the Federal Trade Commission to protect consumers from anticompetitive behavior in the pharmaceutical sector. \u00a0The statement from the commission chairwoman came in response to a request from Grassley and Ranking Member Patrick Leahy to review Mylan\u2019s business practices on EpiPens for possible anticompetitive behavior.\u00a0\u201cThe laws to prevent anticompetitive practices help promote competition that holds down consumer costs,\u201d Grassley said. \u00a0\u201cWith high drug prices on so many minds, the priority of maintaining competition among drug companies is important and welcome.\u201dIn a letter to Grassley, FTC Chairwoman Edith Ramirez wrote, \u201c\u2026 I strongly agree that maintaining competition in pharmaceutical markets is critically important, and I can assure you that protecting consumers from anticompetitive activity in the pharmaceutical sector remains a top priority for the Commission.\u201dThe senators\u2019 request to the FTC followed news reports that Mylan engaged in exclusive contracts with schools, potentially precluding them from purchasing products that compete with the auto-injector to treat severe allergic reactions. \u00a0Ramirez wrote that she could not discuss any matter that may be under review by the commission but \u201cplease be assured that we are aware of the concerns you and others have raised on this subject.\u201d\u00a0Mylan has come under recent scrutiny for dramatic increases in the price of EpiPen and revelations from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services that Mylan misclassified EpiPen in the Medicaid Drug Rebate Program, allowing the company to pay lower rebates than it should have.The Judiciary Committee has scheduled a hearing to explore a reported settlement agreement between the Justice Department and Mylan related to the misclassification issue. \u00a0The Department of Justice and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid are declining to testify. \u00a0Grassley has criticized that decision, citing the need for accountability for the hundreds of millions of dollars in taxpayer overpayments for the EpiPen since 2009, when CMS was told of the misclassification. \u00a0In addition to calling for enforcement of statutes promoting competition to hold down drug costs, Grassley is a lead co-sponsor of two pending bipartisan bills that would help bring more generic drugs to market for consumer benefit, the Creating and Restoring Equal Access to Equivalent Samples (CREATES) Act, and the Preserve Access to Affordable Generics Act.The FTC response is available here. \u00a0The Grassley-Leahy letter is available here.-30-", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.grassley.senate.gov/news/news-releases/grassley-welcomes-ftc-commitment-protecting-consumers-drug-company"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.5438930131495, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}