PPC’s Jennifer Reck Speaks about State Initiatives to Promote Evidence-based Prescribing 

Hallowell, Maine, November 9, 2009—When more than 13,000 public health professionals gather at the American Public Health Association Annual Meeting in Philadelphia this week to learn from experts about cutting-edge research and emerging trends, Jennifer Reck, Policy Analyst for Prescription Policy Choices (PPC), will be there to present information about prescriber education efforts in the states, as well as federal investments in prescriber education through comparative effectiveness research dollars.

“The presentation is timely given concerns raised about pharmaceutical industry sales strategies,” said PPC Executive Director Ann Woloson, in reference to the recent $2.3 billion settlement with drug manufacturing giant Pfizer, the largest health care fraud settlement in the Justice Department’s history.

In contrast to the drug industry’s tactics, prescriber education programs send trained clinicians to physicians’ offices to present the best available, objective scientific evidence in a given therapeutic area. Unlike pharmaceutical sales representatives, who are paid on commission to get prescribers to write prescriptions for their products, prescriber educators are not trying to sell anything. Their only “product” is independent, evidence-based information.

“The job of pharmaceutical sales representatives is to get their brand-name drug prescribed as much as possible,” says Reck. “It’s not their job to objectively compare choices or to consider whether or not there are safer, more effective, and more affordable options available.”

“Prescriber educators empower prescribers with the complete, unbiased information they need to choose the safest, most effective, and cost-effective drugs for their patients,” continues Reck. “Decades of peer-reviewed, published research has demonstrated that prescriber education can better align prescribing decisions with the scientific evidence.”

Reck’s presentation, “Advancing Evidence-Based Prescribing to Improve Health Care,” is slated for Tuesday, November 10 at 12:30 pm. In addition to prescriber education, Reck will discuss the federal government’s investment of $1.1 billion in comparative effectiveness research (CER) as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). She will also provide information about PPC’s efforts to engage consumers in advocating for evidence-based prescriptions, as a counter to the pharmaceutical industry’s aggressive direct-to-consumer drug advertising.