“Lawyering for Access” Focuses on State Policy Issues Related to Prescription Drugs

Hallowell, Maine, October 9, 2009—In the wake of last month’s news that pharmaceutical giant, Pfizer, will pay a record $2.3 billion penalty for unlawful prescription drug promotions, there has been much discussion about the roles of legislation and litigation in pharmaceutical policy. Two organizations that are involved in pharmaceutical policy efforts, Prescription Policy Choices (PPC) and the Program on Information Justice and Intellectual Property (PIJIP), are cosponsoring the legal conference, Lawyering for Access: Legal Strategies to Improve Access to Affordable Pharmaceuticals, on Friday, October 16, 2009, in Washington, DC. The conference, to be held at American University Washington College of Law, will include speakers who have been involved in the Pfizer settlement and other significant health care cases.

The Lawyering for Access conference is part of PPC’s work on state policy regarding pharmaceuticals, including state regulation of prescription data mining, conflicts between state pricing policies and federal trade policies, federal trade agreement impacts on state regulatory authority, etc. Conference participants will have the opportunity to learn more about actions state governments have taken to improve access to safe, effective, and affordable prescription drugs.

The afternoon session, which is open to the public, will include lunch at 12:30 pm followed by two panel discussions. At 12:45 pm, the State Legislative Efforts panel will feature:

• Sean Flynn, Associate Director, Program on Information Justice and Intellectual Property: The Interplay Between Data Mining Legislation and Litigation;
• Robin Lunge, Vermont Legislative Counsel: The Passage and Amendment of Vermont’s Physician Payment Disclosure Law; and
• Ann Woloson, Executive Director, Prescription Policy Choices: The Conception of Maine’s Marketing to Minors Law.

At 1:45 pm, the Pharmaceutical Litigation: Safety, Pricing, and Promotion panel will feature:

• Michael Loucks, Acting US Attorney, District of Massachusetts: US v Pharmacia & Upjohn Company, Inc-- Prosecuting Pharmaceutical Fraud under Criminal and Civil Law;
• Wells Wilkinson, Director, Prescription Access Litigation: The Role of Private Litigation in Policing Pharma Practices; and
• Allison Zieve, Director, Public Citizen Litigation Group: Wyeth v. Levine--Preserving a State Right of Action in Pharmaceutical Litigation.

The afternoon session will conclude with a reception at 2:45 pm.

PPC is a nonprofit, nonpartisan 501(c) (3) educational and public policy organization which provides objective research, information, and on-the-ground expertise on prescription drug policy. PPC’s research and policy focus is evaluating alternative policies and programs to improve access to safe, effective, and affordable prescription drugs.

PIJIP at American University Washington College of Law is guided by an explicit focus on the public interest. Through research, teaching, publications, events, advocacy and the provision of legal services, PIJIP promotes the interests of teachers, students, authors, artists, filmmakers, computer programmers and users, bloggers, inventors, scientists doctors, patients, workers, consumers and others.