“In more than 32 years with McDonald’s, I worked my way up from grill man to president and CEO by focusing on providing shareholder value while fulfilling a need. In that vein I’d like to recognize the 25th anniversary this year of a groundbreaking piece of legislation that has made it easier for drug companies to do exactly that. The Orphan Drug Act, signed into law President Ronald Reagan in 1983, made it possible for companies to invest hundreds of millions of dollars in the development of potential treatments for rare diseases. A rare, or orphan, disease is defined as one that affects fewer than 200,000 Americans. By offering tax incentives for clinical trials of these treatments and granting seven years of patent exclusivity once the drug is approved — compared to an average of five years with most new drugs — the Orphan Drug Act gave hope to the collective millions of Americans living with these horrible diseases.” (06/23/08)