Drug Companies Threatening to Oppose Health Bill

Associated Press by Alan Fram | Jan. 18, 2010 (News)

The drug industry is threatening to end its support for President Barack Obama's health overhaul effort because of a rift with the administration over protecting brand-name biotech drugs from low-cost generic competitors.
In an e-mail obtained Friday by The Associated Press, the president of the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America told the trade group's board members that "we could not support the bill" if the industry is given less ... Full Story »

Posted by Patricia Blochowiak

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Subjects: U.S., Politics, Health
Topics: U.S. Congress, Obama Administration, Health Care
Member Tags: Pharmaceutical industry
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Posted by: Posted by Patricia Blochowiak - Jan 18, 2010 - 4:19 AM PST
Reviewed by: Fabrice Florin (review), Fred Gatlin (review), Richard Riehl (review), Patricia Blochowiak (review), Andre Heinemann (review)
Content Type: Article
Edit Lock: This story can be edited
Edited by: Fabrice Florin - Jan 18, 2010 - 9:57 AM PST
Related Comments: Health Care (8) | Obama Administration (3)

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Andre Heinemann
3.6
 by Andre Heinemann - Jan. 20, 2010

Interesting read about the pharmaceutical industry's role in healthcare regulation with enough references to make it worthwhile.

The article focusses only on one aspect of this multi-faceted topic. While drug companies correctly claim that drug development is costly, they usually neglect to mention what they really spend money on (just check out the SEC filings and you'll be surprised to find that R&D is by far not the biggest cost factor!). Again, the problem here is a not so much what is stated in this article, but the need for a total overhaul of the system and not just regarding healthcare. It appears to ... More »

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Fred Gatlin
4.0
 by Fred Gatlin - Jan. 18, 2010

This is another example of the issues faced to get a health care bill passed. This is well written and informative article that should be read widely.

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Richard Riehl
3.0
 by Richard Riehl - Jan. 19, 2010

A basic overview of why the drug companies are having second thoughts, but the article lacks sourcing from experts to show whether PhRMA has a legitimate case. Without expert analysis, the story amounts to little more than "they said," "they said."

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Patricia Blochowiak
4.0
 by Patricia Blochowiak - Jan. 19, 2010

Given the outrageous profits that the pharmaceutical industry makes, their request for a guarantee of additional profits on the back of a suffering medical system are not at all reasonable.

Patricia posted this story.
See Full Review » (18 answers)
Fabrice Florin
3.6
 by Fabrice Florin - Jan. 18, 2010
See Full Review » (10 answers)

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