Boehringer Ingelheim joins pharma battle over drug price negotiation plan

German pharmaceutical giant Boehringer Ingelheim is the latest company to sue the U.S. government over Medicare price negotiations under the Inflation Reduction Act. The lawsuit, filed late last week in federal court in Connecticut, contends that the act violates the First, Fifth and Eighth Amendments by taking the company’s property without due process and fair compensation, imposing excessive fines and compelling its speech.

Merck, Bristol Myers Squibb, Johnson & Johnson’s Janssen, Astellas and PhRMA have filed similar lawsuits. In July, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce filed a motion for a preliminary injunction against the program, claiming it would inflict “irreparable harm” on U.S. businesses and patients.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services is set to announce the first 10 drugs eligible for negotiation by September 1. After that, the manufacturers of these drugs will have one month to sign agreements to participate in the negotiations. The Boehringer Ingelheim diabetes drug Jardiance, developed in partnership with Eli Lily, is likely to make the list, the company said in court documents. Boehringer Ingelheim argued the negotiations would cause “serious, irreparable harm” to both the company and patients.