The Role of the Research‐Based Pharmaceutical Industry in Medical Progress in the United States

Abstract

The development of innovative new drugs is a time‐consuming, expensive, and risky process. Despite these challenges, the pharmaceutical industry has been remarkably successful in developing a broad range of important new medicines. This report examines several aspects of new drug development in the pharmaceutical industry and provides a quantitative evaluation of the role of the drug industry in medical progress. Results indicate that of the 196 new chemical entities approved by the FDA from 1981 through 1990, the source of 92% was the pharmaceutical industry. Within the industry, there was a sizeable increase in the level of clinical research activity (based on the number of investigational new drug [IND] filings) from the mid‐1970s to the mid‐1980s; moreover, for U.S.‐owned firms IND filings increased 46% between 1976 and 1989. Analysis by therapeutic category indicates that much of this clinical research activity was directed towards the development of drugs for cardiovascular disease and mental illness, and more recently towards the treatment of cancer and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). These represent therapeutic areas in which there is an urgent need for new and more effective medicines. The high level of research activity was also reflected in the relative number of drug approvals in these areas. It is hoped that the present findings will contribute to the current debate on drug policy issues and encourage policy‐makers to consider what impact proposed health care policies might have on pharmaceutical innovation.