Not guilty

WASHINGTON - Sen. David Pryor's office confirmed Friday that it has sent letters with copies of its pricing restraint commitment to 51 pharmaceutical companies, including Amgen Inc., Genentech Inc., Immunex Corp., Ortho Biotechnology, Berlex Laboratories, and Miles Inc.

The White House late last week endorsed Pryor's efforts to persuade drug manufacturers to sign contract-like agreements under which they would limit price increases on both institutional and retail drug sales to the projected increases in the Consumer Price Index. The price caps would apply until President Clinton's health care plan were implemented...