[Ip-health] Consumer Grps, Med Students React to GOP Health Care Act Inclusion of Flawed Generic Biologic Drug Proposal

[Sarah Rimmington]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Following are comments from representatives of consumer, health and
medical student groups, following the wholesale addition of the
brand-name industry backed Eshoo-Barton-Inslee approach to generic
biologic drugs by House Republican party leadership in their health care
amendment, =93The Affordable Health Care for America Act,=94 released today=
:



=93It=92s disappointing that the Republican Party which purports to be the
party of free markets has decided to lend its support to a pro-monopoly,
anti-competition, anti-innovation biogenerics proposal.=94 Robert
Weissman, President, Public Citizen, (202) 588-1000, rweissman@citizen.org


"Today, it is unfortunately apparent that across party lines, special
interest politics rather than evidence-based policies have prevailed.
The democrats=92 provisions on lifesaving biologic medicines=97accepted
verbatim by the Republicans today-- contradicts the major objectives of
health reform=97to contain health care costs and expand access to health
care." Laura Musselwhite, medical student, Duke University, and member
of www.AffordableMedsNow.org campaign of the American Medical Student
Association (AMSA) and Universities Allied for Essential Medicines
(UAEM), 336-908-6635, laura.musselwhite@gmail.com


"The Republican health care bill allows insurance companies to continue
to deny people coverage for pre-existing conditions.  Of course they
whole-heartedly approve of the Eshoo biologic drugs amendment -- in both
cases, it's corporate profit over human life.  Your own personal death
panel becomes the size of your bank account."
Jane Hamsher, co-founder, Public Option Please (POP), (202) 248- 3155,
firedoglake@gmail.com Join POP in the fight for affordable biologic
medicines at http://publicoptionplease.com/home/.


=93It looks like the only thing the Democrats and Republicans agree on
relating to health care reform is the adoption of a generic biologic
drugs proposal that will perversely block price-lowering generic
competition. Unfortunately, this kind of bipartisanship will keep
affordable versions of drugs like Roche-Genentech=92s $48,000 per year
blockbuster cancer treatment Herceptin out of American patients=92 hands
for far too long, or perhaps forever.=94 Sarah Rimmington, Attorney,
Essential Action, Access to Medicines Project, (202) 422-2687,
srimmington@essentialinformation.org Essential Action is a member of the
www.AffordableMedsNow.org campaign.


"Perhaps we'd have greater bipartisan attention paid to access to
affordable medicines for patients if the American people could afford to
match the $1 million a day Pharma is spending on lobbying Congress.
Members of Congress need to look at the evidence and fix the flawed
provisions supported by Representative Eshoo and others to allow a true
pathway for generic biologics." Ethan Guillen, Executive Director,
Universities Allied for Essential Medicines, (775) 287-2553,
ethan.guillen@essentialmedicine.org UAEM is a member of the
www.AffordableMedsNow.org campaign.


"These days Washington, DC is a one party town, when it comes to
influence from big Pharma.  The Republicans had a chance to demonstrate
that competition can protect consumers and businesses.  Instead they
opted for highly regulatory barriers to competition." James Love,
director, Knowledge Ecology International (KEI) (202) 361-3040,
james.love@keionline.org KEI is a member of the
www.AffordableMedsNow.org campaign.


"At a time when we are hoping to reform health care by bringing costs
down and improving patients' access to treatment and care, I am
disappointed to see GOP leaders adopt Rep. Eshoo's language for biologic
drugs. This language will in effect extend pharmaceutical companies'
high monopoly pricing via prolonged periods of market exclusivity, and
paradoxically stifle innovation by enabling easy renewal of these long
monopolies." Saira Alimohamed, student, Alpert Medical School of Brown
University, and Chair of the Global Health Committee, American Medical
Student Association (AMSA). (443) 803-7403 or Saira@brown.edu or
Global.Chair@amsa.org AMSA is a member of the www.AffordableMedsNow.org
campaign.


=93I am shocked at the ability of the pharmaceutical industry to buy what
it wants from Congress. The inclusion of a biogenerics proposal that
will in fact block most generic biologic drugs from coming to market in
the Republican healthcare bill underscores how policy-making in
Washington these days is less about patient's needs, and more about
serving the interests of the pharmaceutical industry.=94 Malini Aisola,
Senior Research Advisor, Knowledge Ecology International, (202)
332-2670, malini.aisola@keionline.org KEI is a member of the
www.AffordableMedsNow.org campaign.


"These most recent developments in health care 'reform' are extremely
troubling.  I am very worried for the future of America's healthcare
system if the only productive compromise our representatives can make is
to throw in this same biogenerics proposal, with its same lack of
foresight or concern for patients' rights." Eric Emilio-Gerrit Butter,
student, UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health, Duke Institute for
Genome Science and Policy, and member of Universities Allied for
Essential Medicines (UAEM), (607) 759-5959, egbutter@gmail.com UAEM is a
member of the www.AffordableMedsNow.org campaign.




--
Sarah Rimmington
Attorney
Essential Action, Access to Medicines Project
Washington, DC
Tel: +1 (202) 387-8030
Cell: +1 (202) 422-2687
www.essentialaction.org/access/

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