If Al Gore had won the presidency and Democrats taken the House, pharmaceutical companies would have faced hostile hearings and legislative proposals on everything from drug pricing to consumer advertising. The House stayed Republican, of course, thanks in part to drug makers' pouring record sums into GOP campaigns. The drug industry has emerged from the election with more than ever, says Robert Hazlett, an analyst with Robertson Stephens. But the drug industry can hardly rest contented. Bush tried to neutralize Gore's call for adding a drug benefit to Medicare by coming up with his own more industry-friendly plan.
Any plan affecting seniors is hugely important to the drug industry.
About 40 percent of all U.S. spending on drugs is done by those over age 65. Yet only about two thirds of seniors have help with those costs, even as the industry continues to introduce innovative, expensive medicines to treat diseases that afflict the elderly. A prescription drug benefit in Medicare poses a particular dilemma for drug makers, notes John Iglehart, editor of the journal Health Affairs. It would surely expand sales, a plus for the industry. But it would also invite much closer government scrutiny of drug prices.