The legislation was sought by DuPont Merck Pharmaceutical, the drug giant that manufactures the name-brand drug and tried to persuade states to block the new, generic competition. Just three states, including Texas, adopted laws. Texas has since reversed course, now agreeing with the FDA that generic warfarin is just as safe and effective as name-brand Coumadin. A spokesman for Bush defended the law, saying the governor was protecting patients when he signed the legislation in 1997. Many health experts say that risk was greatly exaggerated.
Generics offer lower cost alternatives in most cases.
Vice President Al Gore's presidential campaign is seizing the issue as it alleges that Bush is a pawn of industry. The controversy surrounds Coumadin, a blood thinner taken by some 2 million people, mostly heart disease sufferers, to prevent blood clots. DuPont had been the exclusive manufacturer of the drug for decades, although its patent expired in 1962. In 1996, the FDA approved a generic substitute, known as warfarin, concluding that it is identical to Coumadin and safe and effective for patients to use. DuPont mounted a campaign to convince state legislatures that the two are not the same.