The fighter, the saint, and the odd man out: the executives who will defend pharma before Congress
WASHINGTON — One’s a college dropout. One’s a self-proclaimed street fighter. And one survived a presidential tweetstorm.
Meet pharma’s new Gang of Seven, a disparate group of executives about to face congressional questions on what they have in common: Their companies sell drugs, and drugs keep getting more expensive.
On Tuesday, the Senate Finance Committee will poke, prod, and pry the leaders of Merck, Pfizer, AstraZeneca, Johnson & Johnson, AbbVie, Sanofi, and Bristol-Myers Squibb. It’s a televised crucible that arrives amid bipartisan furor over the cost of medicine. Just how those seven executives defend themselves could have sweeping implications for how Washington deals with drug pricing.
But who are these people? Here’s a quick guide to the quirks, qualifications, and questionable decisions each leader will bring to the Senate.
Pascal Soriot: the fighter
Soriot, who heads AstraZeneca, has a penchant for going off message — and making headlines when he does. He told the Financial Times back in 2017 that he “had one [fist fight] probably every
