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Saunders: Industry Must Act Before We Lose Champions For Innovation In Congress

 
• By Joseph Haas

Allergan CEO Brent Saunders, speaking at the BIO International Convention on June 19, said the biopharma industry needs to improve its image before its defenders in Congress bow to public pressure on drug pricing concerns.

San Diego – With former Turing Pharmaceuticals AG CEO Martin Shkreli about to face trial on charges of securities fraud, Allergan PLC CEO Brent Saunders said – when BIO CEO and Chairman James Greenwood asked if Shkreli is the public face of the biopharmaceutical industry – that the industry doesn't have the luxury of pretending he is not.

During a "fireside chat" to open the BIO International Convention here, Saunders – who gained wide notice upon Allergan's unilateral pledge to hold the line on annual price increases for its drugs – said the biopharmaceutical industry needs to come up with "a code of ethics or something" before its poor public image means that even its strongest defenders in Congress won't be able to vote for policies that are friendly to innovation

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