[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 45 (Tuesday, April 11, 2000)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E531]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


THE PHARMACEUTICAL INDUSTRY CAN AFFORD A MEDICARE DRUG BENEFIT AND MORE 
                                RESEARCH

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                        HON. FORTNEY PETE STARK

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, April 11, 2000

  Mr. STARK. Mr. Speaker, the pharmaceutical industry alleges that 
government intervention will lead to cost containment and price 
controls which will stifle research and development of new drugs. In 
fact, they are not spending enough on R&D.
  According to today's Wall Street Journal survey on executive 
compensation, the average CEO of a pharmaceutical company received 
$14.9 million in salary, bonus, and stock options in 1999.
  Rather than maximizing the R&D of new therapies and cures for 
diseases, they are spending it on pay for their executives. Today's 
Wall Street Journal article shows what the pharmaceutical industry's 
real priorities are.
  The top five highest compensated CEOs of pharmaceutical companies 
surveyed were: (1) Charles A. Heimbold, Jr., $44 million, Bristol-Myers 
Squibb; (2) Richard Jay Kogan, $36.7 million, Schering-Plough; (3) 
Ralph S. Larsen, $34.9 million, Johnson & Johnson; (4) Sidney Taurel, 
$33.3 million, Eli Lilly; and (5) Fred Hassan, $15 million, Pharmacia & 
Upjohn.
  The income of these 5 men is roughly half the cost of discovering a 
blockbuster drug that could cure millions of people.
  Mr. Speaker, we shouldn't let this industry tell us they can't afford 
to participate in a Medicare drug benefit and continue research.

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