PhRMA greets new IP protection law

The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) has "applauded" the introduction of the Intellectual Property Protection and Enforcement Act of 2008, which is sponsored by US Senators Max Baucus (Democrat, Montana) and Orrin Hatch (Republican, Utah).

The drug industry group's president, Billy Tauzin, described the proposed legal framework as "critical legislation [which] will help in the battle to reduce the theft of intellectual property around the world and also help American firms fight piracy, the counterfeiting of American-designed products and other violations of US intellectual property rights."

Mr Tauzin noted that US drugmakers spent nearly $59.0 billion on R&D in 2007 alone, "roughly double the National Institutes for Health's entire operating budget."