November 4, 2021
Election Day Update: Governor Murphy has Captured a Second Term, Republicans Gain in the Legislature
  
While results still trickle in for Tuesday’s New Jersey elections, it appears clear that New Jersey Republicans will have made several gains once all ballots are counted.  
 
Over the last two days, we saw Governor Murphy and former New Jersey Assemblyman Jack Ciattarelli locked in a tightly contested race. However, last evening, it was projected that Governor Murphy has secured a second term as Governor of the State of New Jersey.    
 
All 120 seats in the New Jersey Legislature were also on Tuesday’s ballot. With full results still pending, Democrats are expected to maintain control of both the New Jersey General Assembly as well as the New Jersey State Senate. However, New Jersey Republicans have appeared to make significant gains in the New Jersey Legislature, including garnering seats in the General Assembly currently held by Democrats in districts 2, 3, and 11. A number of New Jersey Senate races are also too close to call with Republicans and Democrats locked in uncalled races around the State. Assemblyman Andrew Zwicker has officially declared victory in legislative district 16 where he and former Congressman Mike Pappas were running to replace longtime GOP Senator Kip Bateman. Meanwhile, Assemblywoman Jean Stanfield appears poised to defeat Senator Dawn Addiego in the 8th legislative district.    
 
The lame duck session of the current legislative session will convene on Monday, November 8. We look forward to working with Governor Murphy and the New Jersey Legislature in 2022 in support of improving Patient access to lifesaving treatments and keeping New Jersey the “State of Innovation.”  
 
Want to learn more about the 2021 elections, Governor Murphy’s second term, the next session of the NJ Legislature and the life sciences impact? Join BioNJ President and CEO Debbie Hart and Princeton Public Affairs Group’s Dale Florio and Kevin Hagan for an in-depth discussion and analysis of the election on Wednesday, November 10 at 11:00 a.m. for a virtual briefing.

Click here to register.
Drug Pricing, Build Back Better Update

President Biden has announced a “framework” on the Build Back Better Act that is the subject of the ongoing reconciliation debate in Congress. The framework includes provisions related to education expansion, the child care tax credit, Medicare expansion, clean energy and many other administration priorities. What wasn’t included in the announced framework are real specifics related to drug pricing provisions, including HHS “negotiation,” reference pricing or Medicare Part D beneficiary out-of-pocket thresholds or caps.

BioNJ continues to express concerns related to utilizing innovation-stifling price controls to set prescription prices as well as proposed reductions in small company incentives such as the Orphan Drug Tax Credit and IRS Qualified Small Business Stock provisions related to exclusion of capital gains taxes for stock held for five years. To this end, BioNJ has joined BIO and a number of other life sciences trade associations in signing a letter in support of maintaining the important QSBS incentives.

Click here for more information on that effort.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Energy and Commerce Chairman Pallone and others announced earlier this week that an agreement may be nearing that could include some Medicare Part D enhancements as well as drug pricing provisions. However, at press time, it remains unclear whether there is bicameral agreement on these provisions. Stay tuned in the coming days for additional information on any announced details on the contents of these drug pricing discussions.

BioNJ is reading through the more than 2,000 pages of legislative text to better understand the impact of these provisions on innovation and investment in tomorrow’s cures. Read the legislative text here.

Click here for President Biden’s press release on this framework.
Act Now to Protect Innovation  

Congress is getting closer to considering drug pricing proposals that rely on innovation-stifling price controls to address Patient out-of-pocket costs. We know from other health care marketplaces that price controls inevitably lead to a decline in investment in research and development and fewer treatments for the Patients who need them the most. Now is the time to ensure policymakers understand the ramifications of these policies on Patient access to groundbreaking therapies and New Jersey’s vibrant biopharmaceutical ecosystem.

Click here for BioNJ’s alert on this important issue.
We Need Your Help: Support BioNJ Policy and Advocacy Efforts

BioNJ is the voice of New Jersey’s life sciences sector in Trenton and Washington. BioNJ’s Public Policy Support Series sponsorship opportunities are available for 2021 and 2022. Sponsorship opportunities help make sure that our message is delivered in both Trenton and Washington, D.C. Help ensure BioNJ continues to deliver our message of improved Patient access and enhanced innovation through a Public Policy Support Series Sponsorship.   

More information is available here.
Thank You to Our Public Policy Sponsors
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