ORDINANCE
WHEREAS, the City of Chicago is a home rule unit of government pursuant to the 1970 Illinois Constitution, Article VII, Section 6(a); and
WHEREAS, pursuant to its home rule power, the City of Chicago may exercise any power and perform any function relating to its government and affairs including the power to regulate for the protection of the public health, safety, morals, and welfare; and
WHEREAS, pharmaceutical drug companies have been under fire for misrepresenting the efficacy of their blockbuster drugs and their approved uses; and
WHEREAS, newspapers and politicians attributed part of the blame for the opioid epidemic to misrepresentations of opioids' addictiveness and approved uses; and
WHEREAS, in a Chicago Tribune article published December 15, 2017 titled "Drug rep says she warned of dangers," Allison Zayas, a drug representative for AstraZeneca, reported that doctors in New York City made her aware of at least ten deaths due to the joint use of the antipsychotic Seroquel and the opioid methadone; and
WHEREAS, Allison Zayas reported sharing the information with her employer, AstraZeneca, who actively ignored her reports and encouraged her to continue to promote the drugs for sale, without warning doctors of adverse reactions; and
WHEREAS, Allison Zayas, alarmed by AstraZeneca's inaction and disregard, quit her job and filed a whistleblower lawsuit; and
WHEREAS, the Chicago City Council passed a Pharmaceutical Representative Licensing Ordinance in 2017 to increase oversight and protect patients and doctors from misrepresentations that could harm patients; and
WHEREAS, the Ordinance was an important component in the concentrated effort to contain pharmaceutical and opioid dangers; and
WHEREAS, the Ordinance could be further enhanced by providing whistleblower protections to pharmaceutical representatives who display integrity and honesty, even when their employer does not; now therefore,
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF CHICAGO:
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