Candidates' advisers affirm support for generic drugs

Drug Store News, Oct 6, 2008 by Jim Frederick

WASHINGTON -- For the hard-pressed generic drug industry, the 2008 presidential election looks like a win-win, no matter which candidate makes it to the White House.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Senior campaign advisers for both Barack Obama and John McCain affirmed their strong support for me-too medicines and biogenerics at the 2008 Annual Policy Conference of the Generic Pharmaceutical Association Sept. 18.

Dora Hughes, health policy adviser to Obama, and Douglas Holtz-Eakin, senior policy adviser to McCain, told generic industry leaders their candidates both were in favor of increasing access to generics as a tool for reducing healthcare costs in a struggling economy. They also agreed on the need to create an FDA approval pathway for biogenerics, and voiced support for a relatively short period of exclusivity for the original bio-engineered drugs so that generic copies could come to market as quickly as possible to cut down on the high costs of biologics.

Their position puts both campaigns at odds with the branded pharmaceutical and biologic pharmaceutical industries, both of which support a 14-year period of market exclusivity for patented bio-engineered drugs. Addressing conference participants, Hughes described that 14-year window as excessive, and Holtz-Eakin affirmed that McCain's instincts are to move to as short a period as possible.

Their remarks buoyed generic industry leaders. "Our two presidential candidates understand the true value that generic medicines play in our nation's healthcare system," GPhA president and chief executive officer Kathleen Jaeger told industry representatives. "As American families increasingly struggle with rising healthcare costs, both parties are talking about increasing access to affordable generic and biogeneric medicines. And that's music to not only our ears, but to countless patients across the country."

JIM FREDERICK

SENIOR EDITOR