If passed, CALPIRG’s Pharmaceutical Drug Right-to-Know Act will give all consumers better information about the contents of their medicine cabinets.

A New And Improved Drug Safety Bill
A plan to force drug companies to disclose the kind of information that can save lives and sidestep unnecessary risks has undergone a healthy makeover in the California Legislature.

After consulting with CALPIRG staff, Sen. Jack Scott (Altadena) has introduced the Pharmaceutical Drug Right-to-Know Act, which would require drug companies to make public the results of all health studies they sponsor for each drug they sell in California.

Bill Would Offer Nation’s Strongest Protections
The new CALPIRG-sponsored bill is the strongest of its kind in the country. For the first time, it would give doctors, researchers and the public access to every drug company’s clinical trial results for each drug on the market. It also goes further than any other proposed legislation by requiring disclosure for both prescription and non-prescription drugs.

The bill’s supporters are working to prevent another tragedy like the case of Vioxx, when the pharmaceutical giant Merck intentionally misled doctors and patients about the painkiller’s potentially lethal side effects.

“You and I wouldn’t buy a car without knowing the gas mileage or how it would hold up in an accident,” said Emily Clayton, CALPIRG’s health care advocate. “Yet under current law, the pharmaceutical industry can keep doctors and patients in the dark about safety and effectiveness. That’s wrong, and it’s time to fix the problem.”

In addition to addressing safety concerns, the legislation also would tackle the problem of overpriced and under-performing medicines. The bill would give researchers, doctors and the general public access to both flattering and unflattering effectiveness studies conducted by manufacturers, making it far easier to compare medicines in the light of day.

“The drug companies like to talk the talk about competition in a free marketplace,” said Clayton, “but a free market demands a free flow of information. Let doctors and patients be the judge of which drugs are worth the price based on complete information—not just the information the drug companies want us to know.”

The industry has used its tremendous lobbying power and influence to defeat other drug safety bills across the country and is likely to, as it has in the past, put up its strongest fight in California.

Clayton is undeterred. “Deep pockets are the hallmark of the pharmaceutical industry’s lobbying power, but cash will have a hard time overcoming the genuine public concern and outrage over this issue. As the ongoing media around Vioxx makes clear, this is not an issue that will die down quietly.”

While the industry opposition will be substantial, the legislation gained a key supporter after Clayton met with Peter Rost, a former Vice President of Pfizer. Rost was fired by Pfizer in December after taking several very public stances in favor of greater fairness and transparency within the drug industry and has since become an advocate for reform. Based on his many years in the industry, Rost agreed with the need for public disclosure of health studies and has agreed to lend his voice to CALPIRG’s campaign.

The bill will face several hurdles over the course of the spring. It must pass through Senate policy committees and the Senate floor by the end of May. It will then face a late-August deadline to clear the Assembly.