Anna Eshoo: “I rise in support of the Best Pharmaceuticals for Children Act, which I'm proud to sponsor with Mr. Greenwood of…”

“I rise in support of the Best Pharmaceuticals for Children Act, which I'm proud to sponsor with Mr. Greenwood of Pennsylvania. This bill is the conferenced version of legislation that passed the House a month ago on the suspension calendar 338-86. Importantly the bill we will vote on today and send to the President closes the 'Glucophage loophole' which allowed one company to get an additional 3 years of marketing exclusivity. This bill ensures that no company will be able to take advantage of the exclusivity granted by this very important legislation. This legislation extends the pediatric exclusivity provision, one of the most successful programs created by Congress to inspire medical therapeutic advances for children. Prior to its enactment, 80 percent of all medications had never been tested for use by children, even though most are widely used by pediatricians to treat them. Many of these drugs carried disclaimers stating that they were not approved for children. Pediatricians cut pills in half or even in fourths for children. Throughout this period, we were basically experimenting on children, forcing doctors to rely on anecdotal information or guesswork. This was not acceptable for our nation's children.”