Vizient Praises Congressional Action on the CREATES Act

IRVING, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Vizient, Inc. today praised the work of the House and Senate in approving year-end spending legislation that includes the Creating and Restoring Equal Access to Equivalent Samples (CREATES) Act. This bipartisan legislation will encourage new generic drug competition and help lower prescription drug costs for hospitals and patients.

The CREATES Act prevents brand name drug manufacturers from using tactics that slow the development and entry of new, lower cost generic drugs into the marketplace, such as blocking access to samples. Vizient has strongly supported passage of the CREATES Act since its introduction, and is pleased to see the bipartisan legislation included in the larger spending deal that the president is expected to sign into law.

“Passing the CREATES Act is an important first step in the effort to find meaningful solutions to high prescription drug prices,” said Dan Kistner, group senior vice president, pharmacy solutions for Vizient. “As Congress continues its work to find meaningful and actionable solutions to high prescription drug costs, supporting the development of new generic and biosimilar competition will be crucial in holding down cost growth while supporting competition and innovation.”

Vizient applauds Congress for taking this step to lower the cost of prescription drugs for our hospital members and the patients they serve. We will continue to support the adoption of additional legislation to curb abuses and clear hurdles that slow or prevent competition.

Vizient is the nation’s largest member-driven health care performance improvement company, providing innovative data-driven solutions, expertise, and collaborative opportunities that lead to improved patient outcomes and lower costs.

About Vizient, Inc.

Vizient, Inc. provides solutions and services that improve the delivery of high-value care by aligning cost, quality and market performance for more than 50% of the nation’s acute care providers, which includes 95% of the nation’s academic medical centers, and more than 20% of ambulatory care providers. Vizient provides expertise, analytics and advisory services, as well as a contract portfolio that represents more than $100 billion in annual purchasing volume, to improve patient outcomes and lower costs. Vizient has earned a World’s Most Ethical Company designation from the Ethisphere Institute every year since its inception. Headquartered in Irving, Texas, Vizient has offices throughout the United States. Learn more at www.vizientinc.com.