Washington, D.C. (April 2, 2007) — Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) Senior Vice President Ken Johnson issued the following statement today in response to a Center for Public Integrity report on lobbying activities:

“The Center for Public Integrity’s report, not surprisingly, misses the mark when it comes to efforts by America’s pharmaceutical research companies to educate policymakers about the important role played in helping patients win their battle against disease.  Our priority has always been to help advance patient health and by doing so, we have supported policies and programs that bolster patient access to safe and effective medicines.

“We continually help raise awareness – at the state and federal level – of the potential impact certain policies could have on the future innovation of cutting-edge medicines, patient access to life-saving prescription drugs and patient safety.  When it comes to patient safety, we are supporting reauthorization of the Prescription Drug User Fee Act so that the FDA will have the necessary resources to enhance its drug safety activities to help improve and modernize the agency’s already strong drug safety monitoring system.

“PhRMA also has testified in numerous states and on Capitol Hill about the dangers of prescription drug importation and how opening the floodgates to potential counterfeit medicines put patient lives at risk. We have repeatedly pointed out that there would be no assurances that medicines imported from foreign countries would be safe and effective.  By doing so, we have highlighted several published reports about the growing epidemic of counterfeit drugs around the world, such as those revealed in recent articles in The New York Times and Parade magazine.

“In addition, PhRMA has played a critically important role in helping America’s uninsured and underinsured access free or nearly-free medicines through the Partnership for Prescription Assistance (PPA).  Since PPA began in April 2005, more than 3.6 million Americans have been matched with patient assistance programs.  We also support efforts to help America’s seniors and disabled Americans access medicines through the Medicare prescription drug program. As a result of Medicare Part D, over 90 percent of seniors now have prescription drug coverage – and they are saving an average $1,200 a year on their medicines, according to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. 

“We believe that it would be a disservice to the American public if we did not raise awareness – by educating lawmakers, their staff and other interested parties – about issues affecting the general state of healthcare in America.  Our efforts have helped patients live longer, healthier and more productive lives.  In fact, last year alone, America’s pharmaceutical companies dedicated an estimated $55.2 billion researching and developing new and innovative life-saving medicines. And, 29 new medicines developed by biopharmaceutical companies were approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2006 to help patients treat life-threatening diseases such as cancer, diabetes and HIV.”