The path to cheaper and safer drugs: revamping the pharmaceutical industry in light of GlaxosmithKline's settlement.

The State of New York's ability to secure a settlement from GlaxoSmithKline in which they agreed to publish summaries of completed trials is a step in the right direction. It is likely that other pharmaceutical companies will follow suit and establish Clinical Trial Registers for their own drugs. In order to make such a transition positive, however, the government could consider further remedies, including mandating that pharmaceutical companies publicly disclose all premature terminations of clinical trials. If such a policy is not adopted, firms may have an incentive to withdraw funding for projects that are likely to produce negative results. In order to reduce pharmaceutical companies' ability to misrepresent the results of clinical trials, the FDA could begin rating drugs on the basis of their cost-effectiveness, efficacy and safety. Such a policy would have the effect of both improving patient outcomes and reducing the cost of pharmaceuticals.