Open to Debate Debates “Blame Big Pharma for Out of Control Health Care Costs” in NYC and Livestreamed, October 13

On average, drug price increases are 6 times the rate of inflation and just in the past month, the makers of the EpiPen have come under heavy criticism for a recent hefty price increase. But how much is the pharmaceutical industry really to blame? Is the industry fleecing American consumers, or are steep drug prices a necessary by-product of an expensive research and approval process that yields life saving prescription drug interventions? On Thursday, October 13, America’s premiere debate series Open to Debate will present the third in their special fall season of election-themed topics with a debate on the motion “Blame Big Pharma for Out of Control Health Care Costs.”

Debating in support of the motion are Dr. Zeke Emanuel, former chair of bioethics at the National Institutes of Health, and Neera Tanden, president of the Center for American Progress who was policy director for Hillary Clinton’s previous presidential campaign and worked on Obama’s healthcare reform team. Opposing the motion are Lori Reilly, executive vice president at the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, and Paul Howard, Director of Health Policy at the Manhattan Institute.

Presented in partnership with the Adam Smith Society, this debate will be held at NYU’s Skirball Center and stream live online, then air soon after as part of the syndicated public radio show and podcast “Open to Debate” On October 13, online viewers can tune in at Open to Debate’s new website (http://bit.ly/HealthCareDebate ).

WHAT: Open to Debate Debates “Blame the Elites for the Trump Phenomenon”

WHEN: Thursday, October 13, 2016/ Reception 5:45-6:30 / Debate 6:45-8:15 PM

WHERE: Skirball Center / New York University / 566 LaGuardia Pl / New York, NY

TICKETS: $40 ($15 for students w/ ID). To purchase, visit https://opentodebate.org/

Arguing for the motion:

* Ezekiel Emanuel: Oncologist, Bioethicist & Vice Provost, University of Pennsylvania

Ezekiel J. Emanuel is the Vice Provost for Global Initiatives, the Diane v.S. Levy and Robert M. Levy University Professor, and chair of the Department of Medical Ethics and Health Policy at the University of Pennsylvania. He is also an op-ed contributor to the New York Times. He was the founding chair of the Department of Bioethics at the National Institutes of Health and held that position until August of 2011. Until January 2011, he served as a special advisor on health policy to the director of the Office of Management and Budget and National Economic Council.

* Neera Tanden: President and CEO, Center for American Progress

Neera Tanden is the president and CEO of the Center for American Progress and the Center for American Progress Action Fund. Tanden has served in both the Obama and Clinton administrations, as well as presidential campaigns and think tanks. Most recently, Tanden was chief operating officer for the Center, where she oversaw strategic planning, operations, and fundraising. She previously served as senior advisor for health reform at the Department of Health and Human Services, working on President Barack Obama’s health reform team in the White House. In that role, she developed policies around reform and worked with Congress and stakeholders on particular provisions of the legislation. Prior to that, Tanden was the director of domestic policy for the Obama-Biden presidential campaign, where she managed all domestic policy proposals.

Arguing against the motion:

* Lori Reilly: Executive VP for Policy, Research, and Membership, PhRMA

Lori M. Reilly is executive vice president for policy, research and membership at the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA). Reilly heads PhRMA’s policy and research department in the development and implementation of legislative, regulatory, and political strategies to successfully navigate the ever-changing federal health care landscape. Prior to joining PhRMA, she was counsel at the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Commerce. And before joining the House Commerce Committee, Reilly was chief of staff/counsel to Rep. Jon Christensen, a member of the House Ways and Means Committee.

* Paul Howard: Director of Health Policy, Manhattan Institute

Paul Howard is a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute, director of health policy, and a member of Project FDA, an MI initiative. He is a contributor to The Apothecary, the Forbes blog on health care policy and entitlement reform, and a regular columnist for The Morning Consult. Howard has written on a wide variety of medical-policy issues, including FDA reform, biopharmaceutical innovation, consumer-driven health care, and Medicare and Medicaid reform. His work has appeared in such publications as the Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg View, USA Today, National Affairs, RealClearPolitics, New York Post, and FoxNews.com.

ABOUT OPEN TO DEBATE

A non-partisan, nonprofit organization, Open to Debate was founded in 2006 to restore civility, reasoned analysis and constructive public discourse to today’s often biased media landscape. The award-winning debate series reaches over 30 million American households through multi-platform distribution, including radio, television, live streaming, podcasts, interactive digital content, and on-demand apps on Roku and Apple TV. With over 120 debates and counting, Open to Debate has encouraged the public to “think twice” on a wide range of provocative topics. Author and ABC News correspondent John Donvan has moderated Open to Debate since 2008. The executive producer is Dana Wolfe.

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