Reverse-payment bill held up in Congress by pharmaceutical lobbying

WASHINGTON Legislation aimed at speeding up the availability of cheaper generic drugs has stalled in Congress due to major lobbying by the drug industry, according to the Associated Press.

The Senate bill would ban most reverse payments, which occur when a brand-name company pays a generic manufacturer to delay the introduction of a drug.

An Associated Press review of lobbying reports, from July 1, 2006, through June 30, 2007, found that $38.8 million was spent by at least a dozen generic and brand-name companies and their trade associations on issues including the Senate legislation.

More than half of those expenses were piled up by the Pharmaceutical Research & Manufacturers of America, which represents brand-name drug companies. PhRMA spent $19.5 million in the 12-month period ended June 30 on in-house lobbying expenses, an increase of about $3 million over the previous 12-month period.

And the Generic Pharmaceutical Association reported lobbying expenses of around $420,000 for the first six months of this year. The remaining $19 million was spent by a variety of drug companies, including Bayer, Schering-Plough, Pfizer and Teva Pharmaceuticals.

“Lobbyists have a lot of influence in Washington,” said the bill’s sponsor, Sen. Herb Kohl, D-Wis., who chairs the Senate Judiciary subcommittee on antitrust, competition policy and consumer rights. “If we can just get this to a vote, it will be pretty hard for people to vote against it. A vote against this is a vote against consumers.”