A years long push to establish a board limiting the prices of certain prescription drugs fell short in the Senate after the House narrowly passed it May 21.
In a news conference on May 29, bill sponsors Rep. Nabeela Syed, D-Inverness, and Sen. Graciela Guzmán, D-Chicago, said they were still talking with senators, suggesting Senate Bill 3496 didn’t have the 30 votes needed to pass in the upper chamber. They confirmed it wouldn’t move forward in the final hours of session but said they will continue working on the bill.
Capital News Illinois reports advocates and lawmakers of both parties had varying concerns about the bill, including accountability and oversight. But they were most concerned that while other states have taken steps to pass similar legislation, none have implemented the maximum selling price, so it’s hard for lawmakers to know what this board would do in practice —including whether it would actually create savings.
