U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow today joined with U.S. Senators Chuck Schumer and John McCain to release a list of 15 medicines whose generic equivalents costs will plummet if large pharmaceutical corporations play by the rules and allow them to come off patent as planned. Together, the Senators called on the media and consumer advocates to play a watchdog role in assuring that the drug companies do not attempt to exploit patent laws and kill low-cost generic competition.

"American consumers will save more than $4 billion a year if they are given access to generic equivalents of these 15 prescriptions" said Stabenow. "However, as we have seen in the past, pharmaceutical companies often use backdoor methods to prevent their brand-name medications from coming off patent. With prescription drug prices skyrocketing at a rate of 17 percent each year, many of these drugs are unaffordable-and therefore unavailable-to many Americans. We cannot allow the pharmaceutical corporations to continue to put these medications out of the reach of those who need them most."

Stabenow, Schumer and McCain also called for quick passage of the Greater Access to Affordable Pharmaceuticals Act (S.812), which will close the loopholes in the approval process for generics. This legislation would allow generic drugs to come to the market in a timely manner and dramatically reduce prices for consumers.

"Companies today manipulate our patent laws to get new patents on drugs that already exist. That's not invention. It's prevention. These practices are crippling consumers and seniors who can't afford to purchase the drugs they need. I call on my colleagues in the Senate to pass this legislation quickly to provide Americans with some relief," said Stabenow.

According to the study released today by Schumer, Stabenow and McCain, lower-cost generic equivalents are expected to soon become available for popular brand-name medications such as Claritin, Cipro, Zocor, Zoloft and Pravachol, barring resistance from the pharmaceutical corporations.

As coordinator of the Senate Prescription Task Force, Senator Stabenow has been working to lower prescription drug prices for all Americans. She is also committed to passing a comprehensive Medicare prescription drug benefit and a series of bills designed to address skyrocketing prices.