BIO Statement on President Trump’s Comments Supporting Biopharmaceutical Competition and Innovation

BIO encouraged by President Trump’s comments opposing policies that will make it harder for small companies to risk investments in next generation biomedical breakthroughs
 

Washington, DC (January 31, 2017) – The Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO) issued the following statement regarding President Trump’s comments today supporting biopharmaceutical innovation:

"We look forward to working with President Trump and his team to enact policies that ensure better access to and affordability of today’s medicines and the vision the President laid out in his inaugural address ‘….to free the earth from the miseries of disease, and to harness the energies, industries and technologies of tomorrow.’ The ideas the President laid out in his meeting today--policies that would cut unnecessary regulation, enforce fair trade, increase competition, support small companies' ability to attract capital and strengthen and promote market-based solutions--are ideas that BIO has been advocating for and working to build consensus on with others in the healthcare system.  They will go a long way toward ensuring that patients have affordable access to today's innovative medicines and that our companies have the policy and regulatory environment they need to bring a new generation of breakthrough medicines to our children and grandchildren.

“In particular, BIO appreciates the President’s comments today that he will ‘oppose anything that makes it harder for smaller, younger companies to take the risk of bringing their product to a vibrantly competitive market.’ The vast majority of our member companies are entrepreneurial start-ups working on cutting-edge research and development that is leading the way to the next generation of biomedical breakthroughs and cures.  They rely heavily on massive amounts of private capital, invested over a decade or more, to do the incredible work that they do – and therefore are particularly sensitive to changes in public policy that can increase the risk of such investments.  We are pleased that the President clearly understands this dynamic.

“Policies that incentivize biomedical innovation, reward risk-taking, and avoid heavy-handed price controls have allowed America's biopharmaceutical companies to produce more new cures and treatments than the rest of the world combined. They have made the U.S. biopharmaceutical industry an engine of economic growth and good jobs. And our industry has only scratched the surface of what is possible when it comes to improving the lives of patients and transforming our nation's health care system. We look forward to building on our proven track record in the coming years."

 

Upcoming BIO Events 
 

###