Trump administration to appeal ruling blocking price disclosure for drug ads

The Trump administration is appealing a court ruling that struck down its plan to compel pharmaceutical companies to disclose wholesale prices of their drugs in televisions advertisements. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) filed a notice of appeal on Wednesday, as it prepares to challenge the July federal court ruling. “If the drug companies are embarrassed by their prices or afraid that the prices will scare patients away, they should lower them,” said Caitlin Oakley, a spokeswoman for HHS. In his ruling, U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta in Washington said that HHS lacked the authority from U.S. Congress to compel drug manufacturers to disclose list prices.