News

Biosimilars legislation and its importance to Montana

The Honorable Max Baucus

United States Senate

511 Hart Senate Office Bldg.

Washington, D.C. 20510

The Honorable Jon Tester

United States Senate

724 Hart Senate Office Building

Washington, DC 20510-2604

RE: Kennedy HELP Committee Amendment &
Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act

Senator Baucus:

We would like to offer you our interpretation of biosimilars legislation and its importance to Montana.

Despite the ongoing national economic downturn the life science industry in Montana has continued to develop, expand, and provide our state with an important economic engine. In 2006 Montana witnessed $111 million in academic bioscience research alone. In the past several years Montana has outpaced the national growth rate for funding from the National Institutes of Health. During the same period Montana entities have received an additional 141 bioscience patents.

Additionally, GlaxoSmithKline recently opened a 130,000 square-foot facility. Rocky Mountain Laboratories opened a 100,000 square-foot research facility. The Skaggs School of Pharmacy has expanded and opened a 59,000 square-foot research annex. In summation, biotechnology and life sciences in Montana are becoming increasingly important to our states economy and patients around the globe.

I write today specifically to address amendments to the health care reform package that passed the Senate HELP Committee by a vote of 16-7 and the House Energy & Commerce Committee 47-11. With a majority of Democrats voting in favor of the amendments, both address important patient safety concerns, would help reduce costs and includes incentives for continued innovation in biotech.

We firmly believe that an approval pathway appropriate for follow-on biologic drugs, or biosimilars, must be established in a manner appropriate to preserve innovation and patient safety. Montana stands to be profoundly impacted by the development of a biosimilars approval pathway, and the Montana BioScience Alliance feels that HELP Committee amendment is the appropriate model for that pathway. The success of the existing industry and of the research conducted and discovered in Montana is largely dependent on the ability to turn that research into innovative commercialized therapies which will benefit those suffering from all types of afflictions. This amendment will ensure those innovative discoveries are preserved and allowed to come to fruition.

We offer our sincerest hope and a request from the Montana BioScience Alliance that you support the HELP Committee recommendation to enact this beneficial law. Life science companies in Montana stand to benefit from the provisions included in the amendment. In addition, patients across the nation will benefit from access to new therapeutics which are safe, effective, and which do not inhibit the innovative research and development environment in the United States.

Montana BioScience Alliance appreciates your leadership in the area of biomedical innovation and for fostering policies designed to help continue the growth of the life sciences industry, and it is our hope that you pursue this issue further. If we or our board members can be of any assistance to you on this issue or others affecting the life science industry in Montana, please do not hesitate to contact us.

With all Sincerity,

Robert Bargatze Board Chair

Sharon Peterson Executive Director

Montana Bioscience Alliance http://www.montanabio.org/

Posted in:

Sorry, we couldn't find any posts. Please try a different search.

Leave a Comment

You must be logged in to post a comment.