Health Care & Prescription Drugs News

SACRAMENTO—The California Senate passed the Pharmaceutical Drug Information and Safety Act, SB 606 (Scott), yesterday. The bill requires pharmaceutical companies to disclose the results of the clinical studies so that doctors and patients have additional information on the side effects and effectiveness of drugs.

“Our doctors need complete information when they make prescribing decisions, and many consumers want the same information before filling a prescription,” said Steve Blackledge. “After Vioxx and the latest news on Avandia, doctors and patients know they need more information, and this bill provides it.”

In the Vioxx case, Merck uncovered information in a clinical study showing an increased risk of heart attacks and strokes but was not required to make that information public. Meanwhile, the company continued to tout its drug, even going so far as to put out a news release with the headline, “Merck Confirms Favorable Cardiovascular Safety Profile of Vioxx.”

With Avandia, the information about heart attacks was made public because a researcher had access to additional information thanks to the terms of a settlement over Paxil, GlaxoSmithKline’s antidepressant that has been linked to increased suicidal behavior in teens and kids.

“The latest news on Avandia shows that when information is made public, doctors and patients will be warned of the potential risks of a drug,” said Blackledge. “It may have taken months or years before anyone sounded the public alarm if Avandia’s maker had not been required to make this information public.”

In addition to CALPIRG, the sponsor, supporters of the measure are the California Academy of Family Physicians, California Board of Pharmacy (a board within the California Department of Consumer Affairs), Consumers Union, California Labor Federation (AFL-CIO), Health Access, Congress of California Seniors, the California Association of Retired Americans, AIDS Health Care Foundation, Consumer Federation of California and others.

“We thank the Senate for voting to protect consumers, and we thank Senator Scott for his perseverance on this bill,” concluded Blackledge.

The bill moves to the Assembly next, where it will be taken up by the Assembly Health Committee.

CALPIRG is a statewide non-profit, non-partisan organization that stands up to powerful interests. CALPIRG is the sponsor of this bill and has worked with Sen. Scott as the sponsor for the past two years. More can be learned at www.calpirg.org.