Senate approves bill to exempt certain rare-disease and plasma therapies from state affordability reviews

The Colorado Senate on April 9 approved Senate Bill 140, a measure sponsored by Senators Priola and Marchman that exempts certain rare-disease treatments and plasma therapies from affordability reviews conducted by the Colorado Prescription Drug Affordability Review Board (PDAB). Sponsor Senator Marchman said the bill grew out of pleas from patients and families who fear reviews could jeopardize access to life‑saving medicines.

"This bill was written by patients who have rare diseases," Senator Priola said on the floor, arguing the carve‑out would protect therapies for conditions such as Huntington’s disease, pediatric lupus nephritis and hemophilia. Priola told colleagues the bill would exempt a narrow set of products, and said some testimony showed that exempting those therapies is necessary to avoid disrupting access to complex, high‑cost plasma treatments.

Senator Marchman, the bill’s co-prime sponsor, said many families and caregivers urged lawmakers to preserve access while PDAB’s long‑term effects are better understood. "Please let our family live our lives, take care of ourselves, and not have to worry that the government is going to take away life‑saving medicine for us," Marchman said.

Opponents cautioned that the bill would significantly reduce the PDAB’s ability to set upper payment limits and curb high drug prices. "We created PDAB because Coloradans were making impossible decisions between affording housing and their medications," Senator Gonzales said, noting PDAB was the first statewide board of its kind and arguing that carving out broad categories risks undermining the policy’s purpose.

Senator Weisman, who said he was one of two no votes in committee, described concerns about the statutory definition the bill uses to classify drugs and warned of incentives that could be created at the federal level. He said the bill as drafted "goes way too far in the other direction" and risked neutering a tool intended to address affordability.

Floor debate included competing figures and testimonials: sponsors emphasized patient stories and cited estimates about the small number of therapies that would be excluded, while opponents cited survey and program metrics showing public support for broader PDAB authority and concerns that exemptions could amount to an overly broad narrowing of the board’s remit.

The Senate adopted the bill on the floor by voice vote. The Senate subsequently reported the bill as passed on second reading and ordered it engrossed and placed on the calendar for third reading and final passage.