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The Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease (PFCD) is an internationally-recognized organization of patients, providers, community organizations, business and labor groups, and health policy experts committed to raising awareness of the number one cause of death, disability, and rising health care costs: chronic disease Resources RESOURCES > HEART DISEASE Heart Disease According to a recent report commissioned by the American Heart Association, costs associated with heart disease in the U.S. will reach $818.1 billion a year by 2030. Most of these costs are associated with the treatment of high blood pressure, which the report states are predicted to increase to $389 billion by 2030. Cardiovascular disease is largely a preventable chronic disease, yet the report warns that the number of heart disease cases will grow by 10 percent over the next 20 years if nothing is done. High Blood Pressure: What You Need to Know Blood pressure is the force of our blood being pushed against the artery walls when our heart beats. However, when the heart must exert more force to pump blood through the arteries, high blood pressure, or hypertension, may occur. Left unchecked, this can lead to various health concerns, most notably heart attack and stroke. Fortunately, there are many ways you can help reduce your blood pressure to healthy levels. Read the full article here .

The Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease (PFCD) is an internationally-recognized organization of patients, providers, community organizations, business and labor groups, and health policy experts committed to raising awareness of the number one cause of death, disability, and rising health care costs: chronic disease Resources RESOURCES > ALZHEIMERS Alzheimer's Disease According to the CDC, an estimated 6 million Americans are living with Alzheimer's disease. In 2020, the estimated cost of caring for and treating people with Alzheimer’s - health care, long-term care, and hospice and more - was $305 billion. Supporting efforts to better detect, treat and prevent the onset of this costly chronic disease is critical. For more information on the fight fo Alzheimer's patients, families and caregivers, please visit: WWW.PFCDALZ.ORG LETTER Sign On Letter to Congress re: CMS NCD with CED for Alzheimer's treatments VIDEO Congressional Leaders Champion Access for People with Alzheimer's Disease (April 2023) PATIENT PROFILE Geri Taylor INFOGRAPHIC Leaving Medicare Beneficiaries in Limbo INFOGRAPHIC The Long Road to Treatment: Medicare's CED Clinical Trial Policy INFOGRAPHIC Patient Registries Under CED: Checklist of Endless Difficulties INFOGRAPHIC The Overwhelming Evidence in Support of Amyloid PET INFOGRAPHIC Amyloid Beta PET Scans: By the Numbers INFOGRAPHIC Alzheimers Disease Fact Sheet

The Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease (PFCD) is an internationally-recognized organization of patients, providers, community organizations, business and labor groups, and health policy experts committed to raising awareness of the number one cause of death, disability, and rising health care costs: chronic disease Resources RESOURCES > SUPPORT FOR THE ENSURING PATHWAYS TO INNOVATIVE CURES (EPIC) ACT 9/13/24 Sign-on Letter to Congress Infographic EPIC Act Needed to Protect Access to Medications for People Living with Chronic Conditions Webinar Preserving Incentives for Development and Accessibility of Small Molecule Medicines Opinion Editorial By Tweaking the IRA, This Legislation Could Save Lives, The Well News, May 1, 2024 Press Release (9/13/24) Chronic Disease Patient Groups Call on Congress to Protect Small Molecule Medicine Access and Innovation Press Release (2/1/24) Preserving Access to Small Molecule Medicines Critical for People Living with Chronic Conditions

February 25, 2026 (WASHINGTON, D.C.)  — The Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease (PFCD) released the following statement in response to the State of the Union address, during which President Trump supported codifying “Most Favored Nation” (MFN) drug pricing: “The 194 million Americans living with multiple chronic conditions depend on consistent, timely access to the therapies that help manage their health. Ensuring these treatments are affordable is a goal PFCD strongly supports, and one that President Trump rightly elevated in his State of the Union address. Codifying MFN into law, however, would fundamentally shift the U.S. toward access delays and gaps observed in the countries that MFN pricing would emulate without any guarantees of improving affordability for patients. “Americans living with complex, chronic conditions cannot afford the disruption and volatility MFN would bring to the U.S.-based innovation ecosystem, jeopardizing access to new therapies for cancer, autoimmune disorders, neurological conditions, and rare diseases. MFN would also import foreign benchmarks that rely on discriminatory cost-effectiveness measures like the quality-adjusted life year (QALY), a metric that systematically undervalues the lives of elderly, disabled and chronically ill patients , and that federal law explicitly prohibits in Medicare. Importing those prices means importing the discriminatory assumptions on which they are built. "The patients most dependent on a stable, innovative therapeutic landscape are also the most vulnerable to the consequences of getting this wrong. PFCD urges Congress to avoid codifying a policy that risks undermining both American values and biomedical innovation. To deliver on President Trump’s desire to improve health care affordability, Congress must instead focus its energy on the insurance companies that stand between patients and their medicines while continuing to drive up premiums, deductibles, and coinsurance. We stand ready to work with policymakers toward affordability solutions that keep patient access, outcomes and medical progress at the center." For more health and policy stakeholder perspectives on MFN, please visit www.fightchronicdisease.org/mfn .

February 4, 2026 (WASHINGTON, D.C.)  The Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease (PFCD) applauds the passage of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2026 and its inclusion of many important health care elements that support efforts to better prevent and manage costly chronic conditions. Notably, the bill will increase transparency and lower health care costs for people living with one or more chronic conditions by instituting much needed reforms for pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) in both Medicare Part D and the commercial market. This represents an important first step toward holding PBMs accountable, protecting patient access, and improving the affordability of prescribed medications. More specifically, the PBM reforms included in this package would: Require Part D plans to contract with any pharmacy that meets reasonable, relevant standard terms, with HHS directed to define and enforce those standards beginning in 2029. Limit PBM compensation in Part D to flat, bona fide service fees, fully delinked from drug prices, formularies, and utilization, while passing through rebates and discounts. Mandate comprehensive PBM reporting in Part D on drug utilization, pricing, rebates, retained compensation, and PBM-owned pharmacy activity starting in 2028. Bar PBM contracts that restrict disclosure or reporting, ensuring access to financial and utilization data across the commercial market. Require regular, drug-level reporting to federal agencies on pricing, compensation, rebates, and benefit designs that steer patients to PBM-affiliated pharmacies for PBMs in the commercial market. Require PBMs serving ERISA plans to pass through 100% of rebates and related payments to the issuer, grant audit rights, and strengthen fee and rebate disclosure. The new law also enables better prevention and early detection of cancer by allowing Medicare to cover cutting-edge multi-cancer diagnostics that can detect multiple cancers from a single blood test. Other important provisions in this legislation that aim to advance the fight against chronic disease focus on improving access to care across Medicare and rural communities, funding research for cancer and Alzheimer’s and supporting mental health services. PFCD stands ready to engage with the Administration as relevant agencies work to implement this legislation. We call upon Congress to continue to pursue bipartisan, patient-centered reforms to PBM and health plan behaviors that inhibit access and affordability for the millions of U.S. individuals and families managing chronic conditions.

January 28, 2026 (Washington, D.C.)  The Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease (PFCD) released the following statement in response to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announcement of 15 new drugs selected for price-setting in Initial Price Applicability Year (IPAY) 2028: “Prescription medicines are a cornerstone of chronic disease management for Medicare beneficiaries, the vast majority of whom rely on one or more medications every month to maintain their health, independence, and quality of life. As CMS moves forward with the Medicare Drug Price Negotiation Program, it is essential that efforts to lower government costs do not unintentionally restrict beneficiary access to medicines or undermine continued innovation for medicines that treat chronic conditions. “PFCD remains concerned that this program risks creating new barriers to care through increased utilization management practices, overly broad drug definitions, and insufficient safeguards against discriminatory value metrics. The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) did nothing to address the role of pharmacy benefit managers, and CMS has refused to take action to protect patient access to price-set medicines. Coverage alone does not guarantee access. Step therapy, prior authorization, and formulary restrictions already delay or deny medically appropriate treatment, and the lack of CMS oversight may cause these insurer behaviors to increase as this program continues.   “Further, the IRA flat out ignores clinical realities and threats to innovation. Over the past several years, we have seen the impact that this law has had on the research and development of small molecule medicines, which are essential to the treatment of many chronic diseases and often preferred by seniors for their ease of use and accessibility. The earlier price-setting timeline for small molecule medicines continues to be a significant disincentive for investment. In this round of IPAY drug selection, six of the 15 medicines would not have been eligible had the small molecule penalty of the IRA been fixed. For that reason, we again call for Congress to support and pass the bipartisan EPIC Act ( H.R. 1492 / S.832 ). “PFCD urges CMS to strengthen beneficiary and caregiver engagement, enhance transparency around how patient input informs decision-making, and work proactively to prevent unintended consequences that could limit access, exacerbate disparities, or chill research into unmet medical needs. We stand ready to work with policymakers to ensure Medicare drug pricing policies protect patient access, reflect real-world clinical care, and support a health care system that prioritizes better health outcomes while responsibly managing long-term costs.”