By Pat Bradley
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/wamc/local-wamc-974772.mp3
Washington, D.C. – In a 6-3 ruling Thursday, the high court ruled in favor of companies that compile information and sell it to pharmaceutical companies. In his majority opinion Justice Anthony Kennedy said the Vermont law violates the speech rights of the companies. The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) issued a statement saying the ruling is an important victory for free speech and accessing data for biomedical research. Executive Vice President Josephine Martin states "....legislation to restrict prescriber data is unnecessary. Health care professionals currently have the ability to restrict data where they feel appropriate...."
But Vermont Attorney General Bill Sorrell is not pleased ....
The Vermont Medical Society had advocated for the law preventing drug company's access to physicians' prescription information for marketing purposes. Society Executive Vice President Paul Harrington...
In its 6-3 decision, the Supreme Court ruled that Vermont' couldn't "engage in content-based discrimination to advance its own side of a debate". Vermont Law School Professor of Constitutional Law Cheryl Hanna......
The ruling could affect similar laws in New Hampshire and Maine.