Waxman/Hatch revisions

Consumer Healthcare Products Association President Michael Maves, MD, will attend a Dec. 14 meeting with Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) to discuss possible patent reform revisions. Other trade association heads who will be in attendance include Alan Holmer of the Pharmaceutical Research & Manufacturers of America and Alice Till of the Generic Pharmaceutical Industry Association; consumer organizations are scheduled to meet with Hatch on Jan. 5. Hatch's attention to patent reform issues may have been spurred most recently during the Judiciary Committee's consideration of legislation that would have permitted a patent extension for Schering-Plough's Claritin (loratadine) (1"The Tan Sheet" Nov. 29, In Brief)