PhRMA Statement on GAO Report

Washington, D.C. (December 19, 2006) — Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) Senior Vice President Ken Johnson issued the following statement today:

"The GAO report confirms that the journey from laboratory to medicine cabinet has become more challenging, risky, and expensive than ever before. Researchers are tackling increasingly complex diseases using new tools – such as genomics, proteomics, and nanotechnology – that will take years to bear fruit. As the cost of discovering new medicines has risen, an increasingly challenging healthcare environment is making it harder for companies to recover these costs.

“Despite these challenges, the pace of scientific discovery has increased exponentially in recent years, while new medicines addressing unmet medical needs continue to be developed and approved for clinical use. In the last ten years, more than 300 new medicines have become available, and more than 2,000 new medicines are in development, including 646 medicines for cancer, 146 for heart disease & stroke, 77 for AIDS, and 56 for diabetes. There should be no doubt that recent biopharmaceutical advances mean new hope for patients suffering from life-threatening diseases so that they can live longer, healthier lives.”

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The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) represents the country’s leading pharmaceutical research and biotechnology companies, which are devoted to inventing medicines that allow patients to live longer, healthier, and more productive lives. PhRMA companies are leading the way in the search for new cures. PhRMA members alone invested an estimated $39.4 billion in 2005 in discovering and developing new medicines. Industry wide research and investment reached a record $51.3 billion in 2005.

PhRMA Internet Address: www.phrma.org

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For information on how innovative medicines save lives, visit: www.innovation.org

For information on the Partnership for Prescription Assistance, visit: www.pparx.org

For information on the danger of imported drugs, visit: www.buysafedrugs.info