Sept. 23, 2004 -- An executive from the nation's largest pharmaceutical company says his industry is dishonestly scaring the public over the safety of imported drugs, equating them with tobacco executives who lied to Congress about the addictiveness of nicotine.
Peter Rost, MD, a vice president of Pfizer Inc., made the statements as supporters of a bill allowing importation of lower-cost drugs from other industrialized countries try to apply pressure for its passage in Congress.
Drug companies have strongly opposed the move, arguing that U.S. regulators could not guarantee the safety and quality of drugs brought in from other countries. But Rost counters that European countries have used importation safely for 20 years and that drugmakers will "say anything" to prevent cheaper drugs from entering the U.S. market.
"I believe we have to speak out in favor of people who can't afford drugs," says Rost, Pfizer's vice president of marketing for endocrine drugs. Rost tells reporters on Capitol Hill that he appeared as a private citizen and was not representing his employers.
