PhRMA meets White House on $80B deal

Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America President Billy Tauzin and CEOs from five companies met Tuesday with White House officials to firm up administration support for the industry's agreement to contribute $80 billion to offset the cost of healthcare reform, PhRMA spokesperson Ken Johnson told BioCentury. Tauzin and the CEOs of Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE), AstraZeneca plc (LSE:AZN; NYSE:AZN), Merck & Co. Inc. (NYSE:MRK), Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) and Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) met with Rahm Emanuel, White House chief of staff, and Nancy-Ann DeParle, director of the White House Office of Health Reform. Johnson said the White House officials agreed that the entire $80 billion package will count toward the industry's commitment. This includes drug discounts to senior citizens who hit the Medicare Part D coverage gap, which will not be scored by the Congressional Budget Office as savings for the federal government. "The White House is not as hung up on 'scoreable' savings as some members of Congress," Johnson said. ...