CCPM Urges U.S. Senate To Reject Drug Monopolies, Announces New Round Of Advertising
作者: 整理时间:2005-10-27
10/24/2005
Washington -- The Coalition for a Competitive Pharmaceutical Market called on the U.S. Senate to reject provisions included in Biodefense legislation that would extend drug monopolies for brand-name drug manufacturers, warning that the provision will dramatically increase prescription drug costs in the Medicare and Medicaid programs as well as for consumers in private plans. As part of this announcement, CCPM released a copy of a letter it has sent to every Member of the U.S. Senate and announced a new round of advertising to increase awareness about the harmful consequences of the market exclusivity provision.
The Coalition for a Competitive Pharmaceutical Market is an unusually broad-based coalition comprising organizations representing the nation's employers, health insurers, chain drugstores, generic drug makers, and pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs).
"CCPM urges the U.S. Senate to reject the market exclusivity provisions because they would unnecessarily drive up prescription drug costs for private and public payers without advancing our nation's bioterrorism preparedness," said CCPM Chairman Annette Guarisco. "CCPM continues to support real solutions to biodefense preparedness, including tools to minimize product liability, tax credits for research and manufacturing facilities, guaranteed purchasing, and government funding to accelerate and support the research and development of novel countermeasures."
The drug monopoly extensions are included in, S. 1873 the Biodefense and Pandemic Vaccine and Drug Development Act of 2005, which was approved by the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee earlier this week and could be considered by the full Senate as early as next week. The measure would broaden the definition of products eligible to be used as countermeasures in a way that could grant existing everyday medicines - rather than novel products related to the fight against bioterrorism - multiple years of additional market exclusivity.
"For private and public purchasers seeking to provide consumers with therapeutically equivalent, but more cost-effective generic drugs, the market exclusivity provision included in the Biodefense bill takes us in exactly the wrong direction," said Mark Rubino, Chief Pharmacy Officer, Aetna Inc., a CCPM member.
"This drug monopoly extension proposal is a sweeping and unprecedented measure that would rewrite drug-patent law and force working families, the disabled, and seniors to pay more for their prescription drugs," said Mark Merritt, President of the Pharmaceutical Care Management Association (PCMA), the national association representing pharmacy benefit managers and a CCPM member. "Perhaps most troubling of all, this measure has moved forward without any regard to the cost impact it would have on Medicare, Medicaid, and private payers. America's working families, seniors, and small businesses deserve better."
SOURCE: The Coalition for a Competitive Pharmaceutical Market
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