US Senators urge FTC to closely scrutinise pharma mergers
A group of senators has urged the US Federal Trade Commission ( FTC) to closely scrutinise mergers in the pharmaceutical industry, which it said “increase competition issues and stifle innovation”.
The letter, submitted Wednesday, September 17, was led by Amy Klobucher, who urged the commission to consider whether mergers “lessen competition, stifle innovation or harm consumers”.
Klobucher was joined by Bernie Sanders, Richard Blumenthal, Cory Booker, Mazie Hirono, Kamalsa Harris, Elizabeth Warren, Tammy Baldwin, and Tina Smith.
“The past several years have seen a steady increase in mergers and acquisitions across our economy, and the pharmaceutical sector is no exception,” the senators said.
“This industry consolidation is occurring against a backdrop of ever rising prescription drug spending and reports that one in four people taking prescription drugs have difficulty affording their medication.
It is more important than ever that the FTC take appropriate action to protect consumers,” they continued.
The senators used a recent example of the AbbVie/Allergan merger, previously reported on by LSIPR, to illustrate their concerns, a transaction which they said raised “significant antitrust issues”.
“It has been widely reported that the parties involved are already preparing to divest certain drug products to resolve potential competition concerns,” the letter said.
This reference was made to a recent announcement by Allergan that it would divest an experimental inflammatory bowel disease therapy, brazikumab, and its marketed pancreatic treatment, Zenpep.
The group also raised concerns about the impact of mergers on pharmaceutical innovation.
“Research has shown that pharmaceutical mergers may have a negative effect on innovation by reducing the competition to discover new therapies.”
“Reports indicate that AbbVie is planning $1 billion in research and development budget cuts to pay off debt after the merger closes. If these mergers reduce innovation, competition and patients will suffer,” the letter said.
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