Pharmaceutical companies and House Republicans have aligned to launch a full-scale attack on the new Medicare drug reforms, which represent one of President Joe Biden’s signature accomplishments and have already started to lower prescription costs for seniors.

The pharmaceutical industry is challenging one key component of the new prescription drugs initiative in court, while a caucus representing most House Republicans is calling to repeal the entire program through legislation. They argue that the reforms will reduce investment in research and development and ultimately lead to fewer breakthrough cures.

The legal challenge officially got a new and powerful champion on Wednesday when the industry trade group PhRMA filed a lawsuit claiming that the new law’s best-known feature violates the Constitution in multiple ways.

That provision gives the federal government authority to negotiate the price of a limited set of drugs in Medicare. Although seniors wouldn’t see newly lowered prices until 2026, the negotiation process begins in September, and PhRMA wants the courts to intervene before then.

PhRMA filed the lawsuit jointly with a pair of advocacy groups, the National […]