WASHINGTON, D.C.—U.S. Representative Rahm Emanuel (D-IL) released the following statement today regarding his disappointment that the Australia Free Trade Agreement included provisions designed to protect high American pharmaceutical prices and keep American seniors and taxpayers paying more for prescription drugs than anywhere else in the world.

"I rise to express my disappointment that an otherwise strong free trade agreement has been tainted by provisions designed to protect a captive market for the prescription drug industry in this country, setting a precedent and forcing American senior citizens and taxpayers to continue to pay higher prices.

I am a free trader.  I supported NAFTA.  I supported GATT.  I voted in favor of the Singapore agreement.  I voted in favor of the Chile agreement.  I believe in free trade.

Unfortunately, what we have in this agreement is a back-door attempt to continue to force Americans to pay the highest drug prices anywhere in the world and undercut the bipartisan support for lowering drug prices for American seniors and taxpayers.

There is no reason for these provisions to be in this trade agreement.  But with Eli Lilly, Schering-Plough, PhRMA all on the advisory board for the USTR when it came to negotiating this trade deal, it is clear who called the shots. 

We are setting a precedent, forcing Americans to continue to pay the highest pharmaceutical prices anywhere in the world.  We could have provided Americans a free trade agreement where we open markets, bring competition, lower the prices around the world, but we did not do that.  Ironically, this is a free trade agreement that limits trade.

In negotiating this agreement, we took an ally and tried to force them to walk away from their health care system.  You do not force a friend and an ally to walk away from good health care prices, when they are currently paying some of the lowest prices for prescription drugs of all the industrialized countries.

The Bush administration had an opportunity to do the right thing with this trade agreement and they took a pass.  Unfortunately, I cannot support this agreement on behalf of the senior citizens and the taxpayers of this country.”