National and Regional Life Science Leaders Hold Town Hall to Discuss Health Care Reform Efforts
More than 254 biotechnology therapies and many more medical devices help treat some of society’s most debilitating diseases. For the life sciences industry to continue to create new therapies, health care reform legislation must ensure continued support for scientific research and investment in innovation, said BIO President Jim Greenwood and BIOCOM President and CEO Joe Panetta.
The two industry leaders hosted a town hall meeting for BIOCOM members on Oct. 1, to discuss their organizations’ efforts to educate legislators and the public about the vital role biotechnology plays in all of our lives.
“Health care reform is inevitable and I expect some sort of reform package to be approved this year,” Greenwood told the San Diego life science executives who attended the meeting in BIOCOM’s headquarters.
Panetta has made monthly trips to Washington, D.C. this year, brining local life science executives with him to meet with legislators and their staffs to discuss the industry and the issues it faces in trying to bring new therapies to market. Among the proposed reforms that could negatively impact the industry is a tax on medical devices, Panetta said.
Proposals for creating a regulatory pathway that would allow biosimilar products to be produced needs to include at least 12 years of data exclusivity for the makers of innovative therapies, Panetta said. The exclusivity period is important to ensure the continuation of private investment that underwrites the commercialization of new products. And it is important in maintaining the rigorous process that tests products for safety and efficacy before they are made available to the public. So far this data exclusivity concern seems to have been understood by legislators. Both the House and Senate bills coming out of committee have included at least 12 years data exclusivity, Panetta said.
Panetta urged local executives to accompany him on one of his lobbying trips to the nation’s capital. BIOCOM will arrange the meetings during the trip, the executives just have to make the trip east, he said. It is effective for these people to hear directly from life sciences CEOs about how what happens in Washington impacts them every day in running a company, he said.
Greenwood outlined the national organization’s lobbying efforts, including actions all life science industry workers can get involved in at home. Everyone who works in the life science industry needs to be aware of the impact proposed health care reform measures could have on their job and their future, he said. And everyone should get involved and add to the industry’s voice on Capitol Hill.
“We need to energize our base and broaden our coalition,” said Greenwood, who has been organizing town hall meetings around the country to speak to the life science community.
In an effort to explain the complicated industry and business model to the general public, BIOCOM has taken a multi-pronged approach. It has sponsored free boot camps for journalists, to help them better understand the basics of the science including recombinant DNA. The boot camps also address the business model and provide an overview of the time, investment, risk and regulatory hurdles that are part of the drug development process. One such boot camp sponsored and organized by both BIO and BIOCOM, was held earlier this year at the University of California at Irvine and was attended by local, regional and national journalists from San Diego to Los Angeles.
The industry should take advantage of social media to strengthen its efforts by forming online “meet up” groups in which life science professionals can discuss the issues and discuss ways in which they can share their views with our elected officials on both the state and national levels. Greenwood urged life science professionals to visit BIO online at www.Iambiotech.org, and to spread positive stories about the industry and highlight partnerships through BIO and BIOCOM venues created on Linkedin, facebook and twitter.
For a copy of Greenwood or Panetta’s presentation, contact Terri Somers, BIOCOM’s Director of Communications.
Spotlight on Lung Diseases
Following our 2009 "Art of Research" Calendar, each month, we'll look at a new disease and our companies’ efforts in it, with the information eventually posted to the "About Southern California" section of our Web site.
For our October disease spotlight, we'll take a look at companies with products and devices in development to treat lung diseases. The basic function of lungs is to transport oxygen from the atmosphere into the bloodstream, and to release carbon dioxide from the bloodstream into the atmosphere. There are many conditions that can impact the health of lungs including asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, tuberculosis, bronchitis, lung cancer, and pneumonia. Asthma is a chronic inflammation of the bronchial tubes that causes constriction of the airways. Currently, asthma is the most common chronic illness in children, affecting one in every 15.
The following companies responded to our request for summaries of their lung disease efforts. Is your company not on the list? Please email Kira Jenkins and we'll update you on our site.
Next month's spotlight will be on companies working to combat Diabetes. Please contact Kira Jenkins with any questions or to make sure your company is on the list.
Southern California life science companies working in lung diseases include:
Aires Pharmaceuticals, Amgen, Amira Pharmaceuticals, Biotechplex, Cortex Pharmaceuticals, Gen-Probe, Hollis-Eden Pharmaceuticals, IDM Pharma, Isis Pharmaceuticals, MediciNova, Mpex Pharmaceuticals, Phillips/Respironics, Quidel, ResMed, Targegen, VentiRx Pharmaceuticals, Verus Pharmaceuticals, Vical
Aires Pharmaceuticals: is a clinical stage pharmaceutical company developing therapies to treat pulmonary disorders. Aires is developing AironiteÔ, a novel inhaled drug that demonstrates an ability to treat both adult and pediatric pulmonary hypertension. Aironite may have potential applications in a number of other clinical indications, including Cystic Fibrosis, Pneumonia and other respiratory infections.
Amgen: is a leading human therapeutics company in the biotechnology industry. Amgen pioneered the development of novel products based on advances in recombinant DNA and molecular biology and launched the biotechnology industry’s first blockbuster medicines. Motesanib is an orally administered small molecule antagonist being investigated as a first-line non-small lung cancer treatment.
Amira Pharmaceuticals: is a small molecule pharmaceutical company focused on the discovery and early development of compounds to treat inflammatory disease. This research and development focus offers tremendous potential to identify novel, high-value therapies addressing a wide range of diseases and disorders triggered by inflammation, including asthma and cardiovascular disease.
Biotechplex: provides enabling products for the discovery and development of respiratory and cardiac drugs as well as the evaluation of respiratory, cardiac and autonomic function. BioTechPlex's technologies address unmet needs for cell-based and small animal-based assays for target screening, validation and safety pharmacology and patient monitoring and respiratory aerosol drug delivery.
Cortex Pharmaceuticals: focuses on the discovery, development and commercialization of novel small molecule drugs called AMPAKINE molecules targeted towards human central nervous system diseases. AMPAKINE molecules represent a new approach to treating psychiatric disorders, neurological diseases and brain mediated breathing disorders.
Gen-Probe: Headquartered in San Diego, Gen-Probe is a global leader in the development, manufacture and marketing of rapid, accurate and cost-effective nucleic acid tests (NATs) used primarily to diagnose human diseases and screen donated human blood. NATs harness the power of biotechnology to detect diseases more rapidly and/or accurately than older testing methods.
Hollis-Eden Pharmaceuticals: is a world leader in the development of a proprietary class of adrenal steroid hormones. Hollis-Eden is developing a new series of small molecule compounds that are metabolites or synthetic analogs of endogenous hormones that play a fundamental role in the chemistry of life, aging and disease. These steroid hormones regulate innate and adaptive immunity, reduce nonproductive inflammation and stimulate cell proliferation.
IDM Pharma: Focuses on the development of innovative products that activate the immune system to treat cancer. IDM Pharma is currently developing products designed to either destroy cancer cells by activating innate immunity or prevent tumor growth and recurrence by triggering a specific adaptive immune response. IDM-2101 is a mixture of synthetic peptides derived from well-characterized tumor agents for treatments of non-small cell lung cancer. IDM-2101 is formulated with an immune system stimulant and is directly injected into the patient to specifically activate the immune system to recognize and kill tumor cells that display these antigens on their surface.
Isis Pharmaceuticals: Antisense drug discovery and development is the cornerstone of Isis. Antisense drugs are the first class of drugs targeted to control expression of genes through interactions with RNA. The goal of Antisense drugs is to intervene at the RNA level to prevent the production of proteins involved in disease. AIR645 is an inhaled second-generation antisense inhibitor. The drug inhibits two important cytokins in asthma, which regulate inflammation, mucus overproduction, and airway hyper-responsiveness.
MediciNova: Through strategic alliances primarily with Japanese pharmaceutical companies, MediciNova holds rights to a diversified portfolio of clinical and preclinical product candidates. MN-221 is a novel, highly selective ß2-adrenergic receptor agonist being developed for the treatment of status asthmaticus. MediciNova believes that the improved receptor binding and functional selectivity of MN-221 may result in fewer cardiovascular side effects than are commonly observed with other ß2-adrenergic receptor agonists used to treat this condition.
Mpex Pharmaceuticals: is a biopharmaceutical company developing new therapies to combat the growing issue of antibiotic resistance, with a particular focus on gram-negative organisms. MP-376 is being developing for the treatment of chronic bacterial infections in Cystic Fibrosis (CF) and Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) patients. MP-376 is a novel formulation of levoflaxcin specifically designed for aerosol administration.
Phillips/Respironics: is the leading provider of innovative solutions for the global sleep and respiratory markets. The Company’s success spans more than three decades and can be traced to a history deeply rooted in ingenuity and a passion to deliver solutions to those in need. Their products fall into three primary groups: the Sleep and Home Respiratory Group, the Hospital Group, and the International Group.
Quidel: is a leader serving to enhance the health and well being of people around the globe through the discovery, development, manufacturing and marketing of rapid diagnostic solutions at the point of care (POC) in infectious diseases and reproductive health. Quidel currently produces tests that aid in the diagnosis of several disease or condition states, including influenza, RSV, fecal occult blood, Strep A, pregnancy, bacterial vaginosis, infectious mononucleosis, H. pylori, and Chlamydia.
ResMed: Formed in 1989 with the primary purpose of commercializing a device for treating obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), the most common type of sleep-disordered breathing (SDB). Approximately one in every five adults has SDB, but up to 80% are unaware of their condition. ResMed is a global leader in sleep medicine and non-invasive ventilation based on innovative technology advancing the diagnosis, treatment, and management of SDB.
Targegen: is a biopharmaceutical company that develops small molecule kinase inhibitors for the treatment of cancer, pulmonary, ocular and certain other diseases. The Company’s technology focuses on myeloproliferative diseases, characterized by the overproduction of certain blood components.
VentiRx Pharmaceuticals: is a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company committed to the development and commercialization of novel medicines for the treatment of cancer, respiratory, and autoimmune diseases. Their focus is on the development of novel small molecule product candidates targeting Toll-like receptor 8 (TLR8) for applications in oncology, allergy, and autoimmune/inflammatory diseases.
Verus Pharmaceuticals: Founded in November of 2002, Verus is a pediatric—oriented specialty pharmaceutical company. The Company is building a portfolio of products for the unmet medical needs of children through acquisitions and alliances, with an initial focus on the treatment of asthma, allergies, and related diseases and conditions.
Vical: researches and develops biopharmaceutical products based on patented DNA delivery technologies for the prevention and treatment of serious or life-threatening diseases. Vical focuses their research in three areas: vaccines for use in high-risk population for infectious disease targets, vaccines for general pediatric, adolescent and adult populations, and cancer vaccines or immunotherapies.