Bill Clinton: “Thank you, Mr. President. Amendment No. 1000 Mr. President, amendment 1000, offered on behalf of myself and Senators Tim…”

“Thank you, Mr. President. Amendment No. 1000 Mr. President, amendment 1000, offered on behalf of myself and Senators Tim Johnson and Jeff Bingaman, is being offered to ensure our seniors have information they need to make informed consumer choices about their drugs, and also to ensure practitioners have the information needed to choose the right drug for a patient, and, further, that the private plans this bill would create have the information they need to make formulary and benefit design choices based on sound science. This amendment ensures that various Government agencies--NIH, FDA, CMS, and the others involved in this effort--conduct research comparing the efficacy and, if applicable, the comparative safety of the top drugs used by Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries who are Medicare eligible. Now often there are a number of competing drugs to treat the same condition. But which is more effective? Oftentimes we just do not know. While the FDA is responsible for determining safety and effectiveness of prescription drugs compared to a placebo, there is no Government entity responsible for examining whether drug A is more effective at treating a particular condition than drug B. Meanwhile, drug companies do not always have an incentive to do head-to-head trials of the drugs they put out versus those of their competitors. But this information is critical to all decisionmakers, to patients and consumers, to practitioners, and to the private plans that are being created.…”