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About us
February 2005
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Pay less for prescription drugs

Jim Guest, CU's president.

WORTHY OF OUR NAME
 Our new, free service combines data on drug effectiveness, medical expertise, and consumer price information.
Nexium, Viagra, Zoloft: Since the bombardment of product-specific advertising of prescription drugs began on TV and radio in 1997, earnest people with handsome faces have convinced us that we need particular acid-reflux/erectile-dysfunction/social-anxiety-disorder drugs. Pharmaceutical companies spent more than $3 billion in 2003 persuading us to ask doctors for the latest wonder drug for real or perceived medical problems.

Trouble is, the high cost of drugs and the persuasive power of ads leaves consumers, doctors, and pharmacists without objective assessments of different drugs’ effectiveness, so they can choose the best for the least money.

In this chaos of too much information of too little value, Consumers Union, the publisher of Consumer Reports, is proud to announce a new project that will bring reliable, usable, and free information to consumers: Consumer Reports Best Buy Drugs. This public-education campaign is designed to present concise, readable summaries of drugs that are proved effective and are affordable. CR Best Buy Drugs distills hundreds of pages of medical reports assessing how well a particular drug works and how safe it is. The primary source for the medical evidence is the Drug Effectiveness Review Project, which started at the Oregon Health & Science University in 2003; DERP is now operating in 12 states.

Each of our reports is prepared in consultation with medical experts and reviewed by consultants who have expertise in that drug category and who must adhere to strict conflict-of-interest rules. That information is then combined with data on average prices paid in cash by consumers around the country to provide you with the best buys for drugs within a category--drugs that cost less than their competitors, yet are equally effective.

To access CR Best Buy Drugs, log on to www.CRBestBuyDrugs.org. You’ll find the first three categories of drugs we’ve analyzed--cholesterol-lowering drugs known commonly as statins; heartburn, ulcer, and acid-reflux drugs; and drugs for arthritis pain--in downloadable reports. Each month, CR Best Buy Drugs will report on another drug category. The information is free of charge. You can print it out, take it to your doctor and pharmacist, and work with them to figure out which medication among many would be the best--and most affordable--for you.

In addition, CU is teaming up with various groups, including the Alliance for Retired Americans, Common Cause, the AFL-CIO, and the American Medical Student Association, which will get our information to their members. Over time, the project will include printed materials; community education; and outreach to seniors, low-income groups, and health-care professionals.

With the help of a major grant from the Engelberg Foundation and a grant from the National Library of Medicine, CR Best Buy Drugs is one way Consumers Union is helping you and other consumers get credible, trustworthy information to make decisions about your health care.
Jim Guest's signature.

Jim Guest
President