What's New
CALPIRG-backed federal drug safety legislation was enacted late in 2007, helping to prevent another Vioxx-type tragedy by requires drug makers to release the results of their safety studies on-line and beefing up the fines FDA can levy on drug makers who break the rules.
This year, we're working in California to make sure our state's residents get the safe, affordable drugs they deserve.
First, we're supporting a bill that will hold drug companies accountable if they don't tell the whole truth about the dangers of their products. Merck has used a century-old legal doctrine to hide from liability for failing to come clean about the risks of Vioxx -- we're working to get rid of this technical defense and make drug companies play by the same rules as everybody else.
Safe drugs also need to be affordable in order to benefit Californians, which is why we helped pass the Discount Prescription Drug program in 2006. This program will help the uninsured and underinsured get a fair price for their prescription drugs, by allowing the state to negotiate on their behalf. But the budget deficit threatens the project's funding. We're fighting to make sure the discount program gets the resources it needs to save working Californians up to 40% on the cost of the medicine they need.
