John Whelan: Ireland behind the curve in pharma R&D amid Pfizer call

Pfizer chief Albert Bourla and IDA boss Michael Lohan. Mr Bourla wants European companies to raise their investment in pharmaceutical R&D. Picture: Maxwells 

Pharma companies met with the Trump administration earlier this month to try and defer implementation of the executive order signed by President Trump on May 12, effectively forcing drug companies to commit to aligning their US prices with “the lowest price of a set of economic peer countries’’.

At the meeting of the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) with the Trump administration, Pfizer chief executive Albert Bourla called for the US government to lead an initiative to increase overall drug spending outside the US.