Bipartisan Legislation Introduced to Control Drug Prices, ‘Corporate Greed’ Within Health Care

On February 10, 2026, Sens Elizabeth Warren (D, Massachusetts) and Josh Hawley (R, Missouri) introduced the Break Up Big Medicine Act, a bipartisan bill that, if passed, would address rampant consolidation in the health care industry that sponsors of the bill say “drives up prices, squashes competition, and fuels corporate greed.”^1,2

“There’s no question that massive health care companies have created layers of complexity to jack up the price of everything from prescription drugs to a visit to the doctor. The only way to make health care more affordable is to break up these health care conglomerates,” Warren said in a news release. “Our bill would be a monumental step toward ending the stranglehold that corporate giants have on our broken health care system.”¹

What Does the Bill Address?

Large health care corporations control the American health care system. The 3 largest pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) manage approximately 80% of prescription drug claims, and 3 prescription drug wholesalers control 98% of US drug distribution, according to a news release announcing the bill. These corporate entities are vertically integrated, meaning a lone company can own or control every part of the health care supply chain—from health insurance companies and PBMs to pharmacists and other health care professionals.^1-3

The news release said that, by controlling both the company that pays for health care services (eg, a health insurer) and the entity that sets the prices for those health care services (eg, a health care provider), these corporations may be steering business to their own affiliates, evading laws intended to restrict corporate profiteering, or using providers they employ to boost government payments and pad their bottom lines.^1-3

The Break Up Big Medicine Act aims to address these structural conflicts of interest, which allow companies to put profits over the interests of patients, taxpayers, employers, and independent providers, according to the release. If passed, the legislation would^1,2:

• Prohibit a parent company from owning a medical provider or management services organization and a PBM or an insurer
• Prohibit a parent company of a prescription drug or medical device wholesaler from owning a medical provider or management services organization
• Require that a company violating these conflicts of interest come into compliance within 1 year of the bill’s enactment
• Create automatic penalties if a company fails to comply in a timely manner, including disgorgement of profits and forced sales of assets
• Enable the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Justice (DOJ), state attorneys general, and private parties to bring lawsuits against violators
• Allow the FTC and DOJ to review and block future actions that would recreate the conflicts of interest prevented by the bill

“Americans are paying more and more for health care while the quality of care gets worse and worse. In their quest to put profits over people, Big Pharma and the insurance companies continue to gobble up every independent health care provider and pharmacy they can find,” Hawley said in the news release. “Working Americans deserve better. This bipartisan legislation is a massive step toward making health care affordable for every American.”¹

REFERENCES

1. Warren, Hawley introduce bipartisan bill to break up Big Medicine. News release. Elizabeth Warren. February 10, 2026. Accessed February 12, 2026. https://www.warren.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/warren-hawley-introduce-bipartisan-bill-to-break-up-big-medicine

2. Break Up Big Medicine Act, S 3822, 119th Congress (2026). Accessed February 12, 2026. https://www.warren.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/break_up_big_medicine_act.pdf

3. Break Up Big Medicine. Accessed February 12, 2026. https://www.breakupbigmedicine.com/