FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE March 24, 1997
Contact: Jeff Trewhitt; (202) 835-3469
PhRMA INDUSTRY PROFILE DETAILS R&D, OUTLINES CHALLENGES
Washington, D.C. -- The updated Industry Profile, released today by the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA), details the research-based pharmaceutical industry's commitment to discovering and developing new medicines, and outlines the major challenges to pharmaceutical research.
"The Profile portrays an industry that has helped relegate many diseases to the history books and that is spending ever-increasing amounts -- nearly $19 billion this year alone -- to find cures or better treatments for the diseases that remain," said PhRMA President Alan F. Holmer. "It also shows an industry facing tough challenges, including burdensome regulation, long development times, cost-containment, increasing competition from generic drugs, and patent piracy."
The Profile analyzes the results of PhRMA's just-completed annual survey of company R&D, sales and employment. According to the survey:
-- In 1997, pharmaceutical companies will spend $4.2 billion to research medicines for cancer and diseases of the endocrine system, another $4.2 billion on diseases of the central nervous system and sense organs, $3.1 billion on cardiovascular diseases, $2.8 billion on infectious diseases, $1.2 billion on respiratory diseases, and $3.3 billion on other medicines and vaccines.
-- Sales by research-based pharmaceutical companies are expected to total more than $105 billion in 1997, a 7 percent increase over 1996.
-- Research-based pharmaceutical companies currently employ more than 360,000 workers in the U.S. and abroad, with one out of four employees in the U.S. directly involved in the research and development of medicines.
The Profile includes 88 tables and charts illustrating subjects ranging from life expectancy to the levels of degrees held by scientists employed by the U.S. pharmaceutical industry. It can be accessed free of charge on PhRMA's Internet home page, (www.phrma.org).
The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) represents the country's leading research-based pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, which are devoted to inventing medicines that allow patients to lead longer, happier, healthier and more productive lives. Investing nearly $19 billion a year in discovering and developing new medicines, PhRMA companies are leading the way in the search for cures.
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PhRMA Internet Address: http://www.phrma.org
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