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Billy Tauzin
Former U.S. Congressman and President of PhRMA
Republican congressman who shepherded the Medicare Part D bill prohibiting drug price negotiation, then resigned from Congress to become president of PhRMA at $2 million per year
Overview
Wilbert Joseph "Billy" Tauzin II (born 1943) served as a U.S. Representative from Louisiana from 1980 to 2005. As chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, Tauzin was the principal architect of the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003 (Medicare Part D), which created a prescription drug benefit for seniors but included a provision explicitly prohibiting Medicare from negotiating drug prices with pharmaceutical companies. This single provision has cost American taxpayers hundreds of billions of dollars in inflated drug prices over two decades. Within months of the bill passage, Tauzin announced his resignation from Congress and accepted the position of president and CEO of the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) at a salary of approximately $2 million per year, making his career the most cited example of the revolving door between Congress and the industries it regulates. At PhRMA, Tauzin later negotiated a deal with the Obama White House in 2009 in which the pharmaceutical industry agreed to support the Affordable Care Act in exchange for a guarantee that the legislation would not include Medicare price negotiation or drug importation provisions. This deal protected pharmaceutical industry pricing power for another 13 years until the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 partially addressed the issue.
Key Affiliations
United States House of Representatives
Representative, Louisiana 3rd District (1980-2005); Chairman, Energy and Commerce Committee (2001-2004); authored Medicare Part D with prohibition on drug price negotiation
agency
Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA)
President and CEO (2005-2010); received $2M+ annual salary after authoring legislation benefiting the industry
organization
Controversies & Concerns
Authored Medicare Part D (2003) with a provision explicitly prohibiting Medicare from negotiating drug prices, costing taxpayers hundreds of billions in inflated costs
Resigned from Congress and took a $2M/year position at PhRMA within months of the bill passage, the most-cited revolving door example in American politics
The Medicare Part D non-negotiation provision was estimated to cost taxpayers over $500 billion over 10 years compared to if Medicare could negotiate prices
Negotiated a secret deal with the Obama White House in 2009 to protect pharmaceutical pricing in exchange for industry support of the ACA
The 2009 PhRMA-White House deal ensured the ACA would not include Medicare price negotiation or drug importation, protecting industry profits for 13 more years
Medicare Part D vote was held at 3 AM after the 15-minute voting period was extended to 3 hours while Republican leadership pressured holdouts; later described as the most corrupt vote in congressional history
His career trajectory from industry regulator to industry lobbyist led to multiple proposed legislative reforms targeting the revolving door
Related Investigations (2)
Known Associates & Connections
Tom DeLay
House Majority Leader who pressured holdout members during the 3 AM Medicare Part D vote
Stephen Ubl
Successor as PhRMA president who continued the lobbying strategy Tauzin established
Max Baucus
Senate Finance Committee chairman who partnered on the PhRMA-White House ACA deal in 2009
Sources & Documentation
3 documented sources from official records, investigations, and reports
OpenSecrets: Billy Tauzin - Revolving Door Profile(2024)
New York Times: Medicare Law Raises Issue of Drug Prices(2004)
The Hill: Tauzin PhRMA-White House Deal Analysis(2012)
Personal Information
- Born
- 1943-06-14
- Birthplace
- Chackbay, Louisiana
Education
- •Nicholls State University (B.A., 1965)
Key Timeline
1980
Elected to U.S. House of Representatives from Louisiana 3rd District as a Democrat
1995
Switches party affiliation from Democrat to Republican
2001
Becomes Chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee
2003-11-25
Medicare Part D passes at 3 AM after a 3-hour vote with a provision prohibiting drug price negotiation
2004-12
Announces resignation from Congress effective February 2005
2005-07
Becomes President and CEO of PhRMA at approximately $2 million per year salary
2009-06
Negotiates secret deal with Obama White House protecting pharmaceutical pricing in exchange for industry support of ACA
2010-06
Resigns from PhRMA after ACA passage secures the industry deal