Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Orphan Drug Credit, Repatriation Top List Of Issues Pharma Is Watching As Congress Hammers Out Tax Bill
Stat: What Pharma's Watching As Congress Tries To Hammer Out A Tax Bill
As congressional leaders prepare to lock themselves away and hammer out a final tax bill, one thing is clear: Big Pharma, like the rest of corporate America, is going to get a big break. But there are devilish details the drug industry will be tracking, including the fates of an oft-used tax credit and a long-promised provision that would make it cheaper for multinational companies to bring overseas cash back to the U.S. (Garde, 12/13)
Los Angeles Times: Families Of Patients Fear GOP Tax Plan Will Scuttle Drug Development For Rare Diseases
Of all the proposals in the GOP tax plan, none may be more important to families like Jay and Amy Granzow than an obscure provision on "orphan" drug research. The Granzows, who live in Manhattan Beach, fear that the final tax bill will end up killing or drastically cutting a three-decade-old tax credit for companies developing therapies for so-called orphan or rare diseases, such as cystic fibrosis, muscular dystrophy and Angelman syndrome. The last is a debilitating genetic disorder that afflicts the Granzows' nearly 3-year-old daughter, Cora. (12/13)
