WASHINGTON, July 28 /U.S.
Newswire/ -- Although the GOP has long been considered friendly to drug
companies, some Republicans now distancing themselves from the
much-criticized industry -- a trend seen in the passage last week of
reimportation legislation opposed by drug companies, the House GOP
leadership and the Bush administration. Bob Cusack and Jonathan E.
Kaplan report in the July 29, 2003, issue of The Hill that a number of
Republican lawmakers have become uncomfortable with a close relationship
with the industry. "Drug companies used to be my friends. They
contributed to me," said Rep. Anne Northup (R-Ky.). "But now,
there's no talking to these guys. ... They're totally inflexible."
Republicans distance themselves from
drug industry
By Bob Cusack and Jonathan E. Kaplan
A growing faction of the Republican
Party, which has long been viewed as a friend of pharmaceutical
companies, is attempting to distance itself from the heavily criticized
industry sector.
This was clearly reflected in the
stunning vote on the House floor late last week on reimportation
legislation. The vote, which was portrayed by some as the drug industry
versus the nation's seniors, was expected to be close.
But it was a rout with the drug
industry, and the House Republican leaders, on the losing end.
Even though the reimportation bill
crafted by Rep. Gil Gutknecht (R-Minn.) was opposed by the Bush
administration, pharmaceutical companies and House GOP leaders, the
measure passed, 243-186.
Eighty-seven Republicans voted for the
Gutknecht bill, which would allow for the reimportation of prescription
drugs from other countries. Proponents say the measure will lower the
prices seniors will pay for their prescription drugs.
For weeks leading up to the vote, some
House Republicans sounded like Democrats in their criticism of the drug
industry. Lawmakers from both parties arranged press conferences to
refute the pharmaceutical industry's argument that reimportation would
not be safe.
Several years ago, Republicans did not
publicly criticize the drug industry. Pharmaceutical companies are big
GOP donors and most legislators adopted the industry's argument against
price controls.
They echoed the industry's claim that
price controls would stifle research and development.
Some Republicans adamantly say they
are not repeating the drug industry's arguments because of campaign
contributions. In a Rules Committee hearing last week, Rep. John Linder
(R-Ga.) scolded Rep. Jo Ann Emerson (R-Mo.) for drawing a connection
between opposition for reimportation and political contributions from
the drug industry.
"I said something I should not
have said," Emerson added, referring to her unhappiness with the
way the Rules Committee structured the rule, which allowed the
opposition to control debate. "What am I supposed to say, 'I rise
in opposition to the opposition.'"
Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) said that if
the House's reimportation bill becomes law, research and development in
the United States would move to Switzerland and other countries.
Over the past several years, some
Republican lawmakers have grown increasingly uncomfortable as being
closely aligned with the drug industry.
Rep. Rahm Emanuel (D-Ill.) said the
drug industry and Republicans have been viewed as being
"co-dependent."
Rep. Anne Northup (R-Ky.), who voted
for the Gutknecht bill, said, "Drug companies used to be my
friends. They contributed to me...But now, there's no talking to these
guys...They're totally inflexible."
Gutknecht said the coupling of
Republicans and the drug industry has been overstated. But he agreed
with Northup, claiming that the tactics of pharmaceutical companies have
changed for the worse.
"Six years ago, they didn't do
television advertising," he said, adding that now, more Republicans
are not shy in telling the drug companies, "'You're wrong.'"
Reimportation proponents said part of
the reason the drug industry lost the vote was because its strong-arm
lobbying techniques backfired. Realizing that the safety argument was
failing, the drug industry worked with the Traditional Values Coalition
(TVC), a conservative religious group, arguing that the reimportation
bill would allow an infusion of abortion-inducing drugs to enter the
country.
Gutknecht said the industry's lobbying
"bordered on unethical."
Added Walter Jones (R-N.C.), "I
was so enraged by the pharmaceutical companies that paid and bought the
TVC to work against my pro-life colleagues." Jones said that their
tactics probably lost 50 to 55 Republican votes.
During the House debate, conservative
Republicans took shots at the industry.
Rep. John Shadegg (R-Ariz.) said,
"I want our pharmaceutical companies to be profitable... I just do
not want them to take that money from Americans and only Americans and
to impose the burden of (research and development) on our seniors
only."
Rep. J.D. Hayworth (R-Ariz.) said,
"We already subsidize many of those (research and development)
costs. We also have a research and development tax credit that exists
currently in the tax code."
At a press conference on Friday, Rep.
Dan Burton (R-Ind.) said the vote sent a strong message to the drug
industry. He added the industry will have to reevaluate its position
because "this issue isn't going away."
It is unclear whether the Gutknecht
bill will survive in the House-Senate Medicare reform conference. But
reimportation proponents like Burton and Northup said they won't support
an agreement that does not have the Gutknecht language in it.
Burton called the reimportation
measure another impediment to getting a final Medicare reform bill
signed into law this year.
Many legislators credited Emerson for
securing a deal with House GOP leaders on reimportation. Emerson last
month changed her vote on the GOP Medicare bill in exchange for a
promised vote on Gutknecht's measure.
President Bush, House Speaker J.
Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) and Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.)
oppose the Gutknecht language.
Asked if the issue could become a
liability for Republicans, Northup said she is hopeful that Hastert and
others will reconsider their positions.
The drug industry was one of many
health care entities that opposed the Gutknecht bill. Pharmacy groups
and the American Medical Association also spoke out against H.R. 2427.
Citing safety concerns, 45 Democrats
opposed the bill. However, some Republican lawmakers said that Rep. John
Dingell (D-Mich.), who led the Democratic opposition, promised
Republican leaders that he could deliver 70 votes.
Another Republican lawmaker said some
House conservatives not only voted against the drug industry, but
against what they viewed as high-handed tactics of House leaders, as
well.
But some claimed this was a defining
vote for both parties. Rep. Neil Abercrombie (D-Hawaii) said, "If
you are a Democrat...and do not vote for this bill, there is not any
Democrat in the country that is not going to say you sold out."
He added that a vote against the bill
would defy "everything that makes us Democrats. If you are a
Republican, then they are going to say you are in the pocket of the big
pharmaceuticals again..."
Rep. Peter Hoekstra (R-Mich.), who
followed Abercrombie in defending the bill during the floor debate,
said, "Amen, brother."