For Immediate Release - September 29, 2000
CENTRAL NEW YORKERS COULD SAVE $245 MILLION ON PRESCRIPTION
DRUGS UNDER NEW Generic alternatives could save local residents more than
$500 annually on Claritin, according to Schumer survey
Schumer-McCain bill will encourage competition in the
pharmaceutical marketplace by leveling playing field for generic drug
makers Underscoring the need for cheaper prescription drugs, US Senator Charles E.
Schumer today released data showing that Syracuse area residents would see
significant savings on their prescription drug expenses if low cost generic
alternatives were available under legislation co-authored by Schumer and Senator
John McCain (R-AZ). The Schumer-McCain bill could save Central New Yorkers
$245 million on their prescription drug costs over the next ten years if passed
by Congress, according to Schumer estimates based on a Prime Institute at the
University of Minnesota study.
Schumer surveyed local pharmacies to determine the costs of five
widely prescribed drugs and found that Syracuse residents would see annual
savings of hundreds of dollars on a number of prescriptions if generic
alternatives are available when the original patents for the brand name drugs
are due to expire. But under current law the pharmaceutical industry
regularly seizes upon loopholes to block generic drugs from entering the market.
"In 1984, Congress passed a far reaching pro-consumer law which
created a blueprint to allow less expensive generic drugs to enter the
market. In recent years, as the stakes and drug company profits have grown
larger, the lawyers have picked this law clean," said Schumer. "If this
pro-consumer law isn't dead, it's dying."
To restore the original purpose of the 1984 generic drug law, also
known as Hatch-Waxman, Schumer and McCain this month introduced the Greater
Access to Affordable Pharmaceuticals Act (GAAP) to allow generic drug
companies to enter the market promptly after brand name company patents
expire. The bill seeks to speed the approval of generic drugs by the Food
and Drug Administration by eliminating legal hurdles and loopholes that have
nothing to do with the medication's effectiveness.
"The original law allowed brand name companies to have a set
amount of time of market exclusive rights before a bio-equivalent generic drug
could compete on the market. But when the clock runs out the drug company
claims the generic is not bio-equivalent over some frivolous reason like the
shape of the pill or the color of the bottle," said Schumer. "It would be
laughable were it not costing consumers hundreds of dollars each year."
Under the Schumer-McCain legislation:
•
The number of patents that a generic drug company must address for FDA approval would be limited to two categories – how the drug works and how it is taken. Other frivolous patent challenges on such items as the color and shape of pills and bottles would be barred.• It blocks brand name companies from paying generic manufacturers for keeping their product off the market. Recently, Abbott Laboratories admitted to paying Geneva Pharmaceuticals $4.5 million a month to keep its generic equivalent of the hypertension and prostate cancer drug Hytrin off the market.
• It expands the FDA's jurisdiction to allow approval of generic versions of inhalers and topical treatments like skin ointments. Currently, only generic oral and intravenous medications can be readily approved by FDA.
According to Schumer estimates based on Prime Institute findings, if generic drugs are able to come to market as soon as brand-name patents expire, consumers could save $71 billion on prescription drugs over the next 10 years. The Prime Institute estimates that by the third year a generic alternative is on the market, consumers save, on average, 60% when they choose the generic over the name brand. In Central New York, those savings could mean $245 million for local residents over the next ten years.
In his survey of local drug costs, Schumer found that a person using Prilosec, a widely-used ulcer medication, could save about $900 a year if a generic were available–$604 for the generic versus $1511 for the branded version. Instead of spending $1435 annually on a prescription of Zocor, a popular cholesterol medication, Central New Yorkers could save more than $850 by buying the generic version of the drug for only $574 per year.
A person taking Norvasc, a commonly prescribed drug for heart disease, normally pays about $47 for a month's supply at Syracuse's Crouse Pharmacy. If a generic were available, that person would have the option of paying an estimated $18 a month and would save more than $300 annually. Similarly, a person filling a prescription of Claritin pays about $74 a month but would have to pay only about $30 for a generic version, saving more than $500 annually.
Schumer said that an added benefit to his bipartisan bill is that it will not get caught in the partisan battles that have doomed other efforts to make prescription drugs more affordable.
"Over the years, every attempt to make prescription drugs more affordable for working families has broken down over partisan or ideological lines," said Schumer. "We are accomplishing these huge savings not by redrawing ideological battle lines, but by restoring the intent of our patent laws."
The Schumer-McCain bill has been endorsed by the Health Insurance Association of America (HIAA), the Consumer Federation of America (CFA), Blue Cross/Blue Shield, the Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy, the Consumers Union, the National Consumer League and the Alliance of Community Health Plans.
"It isn't often that these groups come together to endorse a bill. I think it means that John McCain and I are on to something pretty special," said Schumer.
# # #
