Tauzin steps down as PhRMA chief

The president and CEO of The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA), 66-year-old Billy Tauzin, will step down on June 30 amidst reports that he has been under increasing fire since the victory of the Republicans in the Massachusetts Senate race last month.

Former congressman and powerful lobbyist, Tauzin's involvement in brokering a deal with the White House on health reform has, it has been said, also strained relationships inside the group.

The New York Times reports that Tauzin's deal with the White House, 'to limit the drug industry's total costs under the proposed health care overhaul to $80bn over 10 years,' sparked internal dispute within PhRMA. After the reform stalled, some industry leaders felt the trade group had gone too far giving concessions and could lose on some important legislative issues without gaining the political protection it had sought. Under Tauzin, PhRMA spent "more than $100 million on ads to promote the overhaul."

Tauzin has been head of the pharmaceutical industry group for the last five years.