Pharma politcal donations "blocked new laws"

The Washington DC, USA-based pressure-group, Center for Public Integrity has issued a new report, claiming that US drugmakers have spent millions of dollars - with some notable successes - to block price-control measures under consideration by individual US states.

The authors quote legislative data compiled by the National Conference of State Legislatures, finding that 33 states have enacted at least 66 separate pieces of legislation related to cutting drug costs since 2003. In addition, almost every state has tried to implement one or more prescription drug cost-saving measures since 2000.

The most industry lobbying reported was in California, the state with the largest prescription drug budget in the USA. Medi-Cal, the agency that administers the republic's Medicaid program, spends about $4.0 billion a year for prescription drugs. Drug companies and associations reported spending $8.9 million lobbying in the state in 2003 and 2004, one-fifth of their nationwide total.