Sunlight Foundation

Did Congress write a prescription for Chantix?

By Anupama Narayanswamy Jun 24 2008 2:02 p.m.

Last week, some members of Congress called for an immediate suspension of a drug testing program administered by the Department of Veterans Affairs after ABC News and the Washington Times reported that one of the side effects a specific drug that helps kick the smoking habit could possibly be suicide.

The drug Chantix, manufactured by Pfizer, has been used in programs by the Department of Veterans Affairs as a smoking cessation drug. The ABC report revealed that, "mentally distressed veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan are being recruited for government tests on pharmaceutical drugs linked to suicide and other violent side effects."

But did Congress authorize the tests?

The recently passed Defense Authorization Bill for fiscal year 2009 included a number of preventive health care programs. According to information posted on the House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's Web site, one of those is "a smoking cessation program, including classes and nicotine replacement including classes and nicotine replacement."

Language in the 2009 Defense Authorization Act requires the Secretary of Defense to create a smoking cessation program under which all veterans would be eligible to receive rebates to help them quit smoking. Section 713 of the bill reads, The program would include the availability of a pharmaceutical used for smoking cessation by prescription at no cost."

Since 2007, Pfizer has been lobbying the House, the Senate and the Department of Veterans Affairs on issues related to Defense authorization and appropriations, according to lobbying forms filed with the Senate Office of Public Records.

Although a staffer for the Armed Services Committee that oversees the program said that the Department of Defense would use only drugs that is approved by the Food and Drug Administration, to date the FDA appears to have approved only one other drug--Zyban, which has a longer list of side effects than Chantix.

For its part, Pfizer defends Chantix.

Search the Blog

Real Time Ticker

Recent Posts

Reporting we're watching

Popular tags

2012 election 2012 elections 2013 Inauguration Ad Ad Hawk Ad Hoc AIG american crossroads Arab Spring Barack Obama BP budget Campaign contributions Campaign Finance Center for Responsive Politics Citizens United consumer banking Contracting Conventions2012 Correspondence crossroads GPS dark money Data Mine datamine debt ceiling Disclose act Distributed Research Dodd-Frank Earmarks Election 2012 Elizabeth Warren FARA FCC FDA FEC Federal Election Commission Finance Data Catalog Financial Bailout Financial Reform FLIT FOIA follow the unlimited money Foreign lobbying Foreign Lobbying Influence Tracker freshmen Fundraising Guns Handy Tools health care Hoc House House Freshmen 112th House Majority PAC Immigration Independent Expenditure Independent expenditures influence Influence Explorer investment James Bopp Jr. Lobbying lobbying tracker Logs_6553 Majority PAC Mark Sanford Market Meltdown Media Medicare meeting logs Mitt Romney National Rifle Association Newt Gingrich NRA obama OGD Open Government Directive Orrin Hatch outside spending Party Time PMA Group political ad sleuth Political Party Time Politwoops President Obama Priorities USA Action Recovery Recovery.gov Rep. John Murtha Research Restore Our Future revolving door Rick Perry Rick Santorum Romney Ron Paul Sen. Christopher Dodd Sheldon Adelson states of transparency Stealthy Wealthy stimulus Sunlight Live super committee super congress Super PAC super PAC profile Super PACs supercommittee Supercongress supreme court TARP Taxpayers for Common Sense transparency