S. 527, Prescription Pricing for the People Act of 2025

S. 527 would require the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to study whether anticompetitive practices exist within the pharmaceutical supply chain, especially as carried out by pharmacy benefit managers or intermediaries. Under the bill, the FTC would:

• Research potential legal or regulatory barriers that prevent the commission from effectively enforcing violations of the antitrust and consumer protection laws in the pharmaceutical supply chain,
• Study any legal or regulatory obstacles that contribute to the cost of prescription drugs,
• Identify methods that payers and companies use to assess the costs and benefits of contracting with intermediaries,
• Formulate policy or legislative recommendations to deter anticompetitive behavior in the pharmaceutical supply chain and report its findings to the Congress, and
• Report to the Congress on the number and nature of complaints against sole-source drug manufacturers, the commission’s ability to engage in enforcement against such manufacturers, and recommendations to strengthen its ability to prosecute anticompetitive behavior.

Using information from the FTC about the cost of similar activities, CBO estimates that the agency would need about 12 employees for about one year, including attorneys, economists, research analysts, and paralegals, to complete the required work. Although the cost would vary by position, CBO estimates that the average cost of an employee would be around $240,000. On that basis, CBO estimates that implementing the bill would cost $3 million over the next two years; any related spending would be subject to the availability of appropriated funds.

The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Margot Berman. The estimate was reviewed by H. Samuel Papenfuss, Deputy Director of Budget Analysis.