A lobbying battle is being waged ahead of votes on bills to reign in big operators in the compounding pharmacy niche with pharma on one side and the new breed of compounders on the other. There have been bills introduced into both the House and the Senate that would bring at least some of the larger compounders under FDA control, with the Senate bill going further in that regard. The FDA is supporting the Senate bill. Compounders caught legislative heat after last year's fatal fungal meningitis outbreak tied to the New England Compounding Center. According to Politico, the International Academy of Compounding Pharmacists, one of the largest business groups tied to the compounding industry, traditionally spends about $80,000 a year on lobbyists. But it has significantly upped its lobbying, bringing on two new firms this year. It has spent 5-and-a-half times more in the first 6 months of this year, racking up bills of nearly $440,000. The Generic Pharmaceutical Association (GPhA), which lists compounding issues among its many concerns, is on track to again spend $2 million on lobbying this year. The GPhA wants compounders to stop making copies of FDA approved drugs without meeting FDA standards. It recently sent a letter to sponsors of a House bill asking them to toughen it up. Story | More