If enacted, it would repeal a section of a legislation called as the sunset provision, which permitted opioid manufacturers’ costs to be decreased whenever their settlements with the state exceeded $250 million.
Cammie LaValle of Lakeville is a patient whose well-being is dependent on pain medicines. She suffers from complicated regional pain syndrome, which causes her “severe, unrelenting pain.”
After years of experimenting with numerous drugs, LaValle discovered one that worked for her: prescription opioids. She claims that due to the numerous rules in place, her medication is unexpected and frequently pricey.
Her prescription cost $200 extra from month to month, despite the fact that it was the same dosage, brand, drugstore, and insurance plan, she said.
“I had no idea until I went to get the prescription.” I’m also handicapped, and my family is single-income. You budget for things like this, just like you do for your health care. When you have an unexpected $200, it puts families in a difficult place,” LaValle explained.
Her concerns are heightened by a proposed provision in a Minnesota House omnibus measure. If enacted, it would repeal a section of a legislation called as the sunset provision, which permitted opioid manufacturers’ costs to be decreased whenever their settlements with the state exceeded $250 million.
HF2847, sponsored by Rep. Mohamud Noor, DFL-Minneapolis, also aims to address the state’s high turnover rates of direct support professionals and strengthen the workforce by offering well-paying positions. However, pain management advocates feel that a portion of the measure will be extremely harmful.
Rep. Dave Baker, R-Willmar, believes that eliminating the sunset provision is incorrect. Baker’s 25-year-old son died of an opioid overdose in 2011. He was elected to the House in 2014 and presently chairs the Opioid Epidemic Response Advisory Council.
“Those pharmaceutical companies committed atrocities that killed my son.” That’s what got me here since my kid died of an opioid overdose in 2011 when things were fully out of hand. So I should be the angrier, the most frustrated person in this room,” Baker explained. “(Pharmaceutical companies) admitted to making mistakes; they’re paying billions of dollars in lawsuit settlements across the country.” They’re paying a high price, and I don’t think they should be struck and beaten any longer.”
Not agreed upon from the beginning
The Attorney General’s Office agreed to a $26 billion nationwide settlement in 2021 with pharmaceutical distributors McKesson, Cardinal Health, and AmerisourceBergen, as well as opioid maker Johnson & Johnson. Over the next 18 years, these settlements will bring more than $300 million into Minnesota. The Attorney General’s Office will join five multistate settlements totaling $20.4 billion in December 2022, with Minnesota’s part estimated to be roughly $235 million. Cities and counties in Minnesota will use the monies from these agreements to finance remediation initiatives and efforts to tackle the opioid problem.
The sunset clause did not originate in the House version of the bill, but rather in the conference committee in 2019. Rep. Liz Olson, DFL-Duluth, told MinnPost at the time that it was a “huge concession.”
The omnibus package, which contains the removal of the sunset settlement, was debated on the House floor on April 25.
“The changes that are being proposed today are problematic, and they trouble me,” Baker added.
Olson and Noor did not respond to MinnPost’s requests for comment on the sunset provision.
Baker anticipated that Minnesota would get $500 million from opioid manufacturer litigation, and that the increased payments for manufacturers would stop by 2031.
“We said if we hit $250 million in Minnesota, we’ll blink back to the new and more reasonable licensing fees,” he explained. “We’re gonna sunset this higher fee to a new level, a new normal level, which is much higher than it was, but it does bring down the really high fees that we’re collecting right now because of the ability from either lawsuits or licensing fees.”
What will be different?
The Act also increased the application costs for license and registration of several professions, including medication distributors and manufacturers. Baker believes that the inclusion of the sunset provision was a crucial factor in the initial application price hikes passing in 2019.
“It would never have passed in the first place if there hadn’t been a sunset agreement,” he added. “I’d like to leave that alone.” That was our pledge. We made a deal, and we must keep to it.”
Dr. Todd Hess, a pain management specialist who formerly managed a clinic in the Twin Cities and has previously spoken on behalf of pharmaceutical firms for a fee, feels the same way. Hess, who retired a year ago, believes this will raise expenses and limit patient access.
“The state of Minnesota could have $500 million, with the majority of that going toward addiction, and yet you’re going to raise the fees on my legitimate opioid patients when you already have half a billion dollars?” Hess stated.
The omnibus measure was passed by the House 70-60 and referred to the Senate, where it is sponsored by Sen. John Hoffman, DFL-Champlin. The sunset provision is not repealed in the Senate version. On May 2, the House-Senate conference committee will consider some of the disagreements, including that one.
What effect does this have on pain patients?
The McGill Pain Index for LaValle’s syndrome is 42 out of 50.
“This is worse than amputation or unprepared childbirth, and I wouldn’t believe it unless I saw it for myself.” “This is excruciating, unrelenting pain,” she explained. “This has been a long battle for me, and I’m trying to protect not only access to medications for myself, so I can have a better quality of life and more functions, but also for all Minnesotans who are dealing with this.”
Hess feels that the increased prices for makers and wholesalers will have an impact on individuals who rely on these prescriptions on a regular basis. These drugs, according to LaValle, allow her to continue physical therapy and strengthening.
“I’m able to do more physical therapy because I have access to pain medications.” I can now perform additional activities and strength training. I’m capable of doing the dishes. I can do the laundry. “I even mowed part of my yard last summer,” she explained.
According to Hess, many pain management patients already have difficulty accessing their drugs, and the planned adjustments exacerbate their concerns.
“What concerned me about this bill is that it is yet another increased cost that will be passed on to my pain patients,” Hess explained. “Many of my patients are already on disability or at the end of life, or have a severe chronic illness, and they don’t have the means that the rest of us do to pay for these medications.”
This item has been amended to reflect that Dr. Todd Hess no longer speaks on behalf of pharmaceutical firms for a fee.
Erin Balsa is a highly skilled and knowledgeable health journalist with a passion for educating the public on important health and wellness topics. With extensive experience in both traditional and digital media, Erin has established herself as a trusted voice in the field.