[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 17 (Thursday, February 24, 1994)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: February 24, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
  PMA ADVERTISEMENTS--WASTING MILLIONS THAT COULD BE SPENT ON RESEARCH

                                 ______


                        HON. FORTNEY PETE STARK

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, February 24, 1994

  Mr. STARK. Mr. Speaker, you can learn a lot about glossing-over your 
image if you closely study the practices of the Pharmaceutical 
Manufacturers Association. The PMA represents more than 100 of 
America's pharmaceutical and biotech companies. And the PMA loves to 
talk about themselves. Every year they spend about as much on 
advertising as research and development.
  A friend of mine recently sent me a spoof on the PMA's current 
multimillion dollar TV-ad campaign and I'd like to share it with the 
country.

       A girl: ``My family has a history of breast cancer. So this 
     is very important to me.''
       A woman: ``My daughter has Gaucher's disease. We just don't 
     have $300,000 a year for the cure.''
       A daughter: ``My mom has been taking estrogens--Premarin, I 
     think it is--for about 10 years. And the price has more than 
     tripled in that time. The advertising they're doing, they 
     just have to stop. It's just too expensive.''
       Narrator: ``America, we hear you, and we share your 
     urgency. Right now pharmaceutical companies have thousands of 
     people searching for ways to spend billions of dollars 
     marketing their drugs. Researchers seem to be close to 
     finding cures to fight breast cancer, AIDS, and Alzheimer's. 
     If they just would spend less on marketing and advertising, 
     and focus on finding cures we can afford, we'd all be better 
     off.''

  I am a strong supporter of drug research, Mr. Speaker, and I am 
deeply, deeply concerned that the PMA continues to spend billions on 
advertising which could have and should have been spent on research. 
For example, the Wall Street Journal estimates that the PMA's recent 
TV-ad campaign cost roughly $17 million--what a waste.
  What upsets me most is that after the multimillion dollar ad 
campaigns, and after attempts to water-down health care reform, the PMA 
says ``We don't have any more money for research! We're going to 
continue to gouge America's seniors with skyrocketing prices. And if 
you try to stop us from reaping monopolistic profits, we'll just stop 
making new drugs!''
  Frankly, Mr. Speaker, these scare tactics are getting old. I don't 
think anyone believes that the pharmaceutical manufacturers--our 
Nation's most profitable industry--are so desperate. America's wising 
up, and it wants the PMA to stop wasting our money on glossing-over its 
image--it's costing us new, innovative drugs.
  Mr. Speaker, we must not let the drug makers' greed stop us from 
working toward health care reform and reasonable prescription drug 
prices for consumers. Health reform will not compromise the PMA's 
ability to research new drugs--however, it might make them think twice 
about wasting money on their image.

                          ____________________