Pharma

Competition in the Pharmaceutical Marketplace
Gregory J. Glover, M.D., J.D. for the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America before the Federal Trade Commission and the Department of Justice – Antitrust Division Washington, D.C. March 19, 2002

On behalf of the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (“PhRMA”), I am pleased to appear before you today to present testimony on Issues of Competition in the Pharmaceutical Industry. I am a physician and an attorney with the law firm of Ropes & Gray, specializing in representing the research-based industry at the intersection of intellectual property and FDA regulatory law. PhRMA represents the country’s leading research-based pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, which are devoted to inventing medicines that allow patients to lead longer, healthier and more productive lives. Having invested over $30 billion in 2001 alone in discovering and developing new medicines, PhRMA companies lead the way in the search for cures. Today, I will speak on the drug development cycle and the fundamental role intellectual property rights play in this cycle; the importance of maintaining incentives for pharmaceutical research and development; and the compatibility of competition and intellectual property rights.

2 Achieving the promise of pharmaceutical innovation requires the maintenance of strong and predictable intellectual property rights. The social value of the pharmaceutical industry is apparent and profound. Not only is it the source of costeffective treatments that continue to increase life expectancy and bring better lives, it is also a significant contributor to the strength of the United States economy. The private sector research performed by the research-based pharmaceutical companies is essential to the innovation that has supported the health care revolution in America. The research-based pharmaceutical sector is the single largest source of research and development funding in the... [continues]

Read full essay