Despite Michigan's FDA-preemption rule, Pfizer is cutting jobs and moving out of state
Michigan has a unique law that already prevents someone from suing a drug manufacturer if they're injured by a drug approved by the FDA. The law was a present to Pfizer, who had a large number of workers employed in Michigan:
The drugmaker plans to eliminate the manufacturing jobs before the end of the year, according to The Kalamazoo Gazette.
Plant supervisors were announcing plans to workers this morning as part of “ongoing efforts to remain globally competitive,” a Pfizer spokesman tells the paper. “We’re restructuring many of our support staff, supervisory and operational functions in Kalamazoo manufacturing. The net impact will be a reduction of 275 positions.” There was no word on how much would be saved by the move.
The cutback, which follows shifting extensive research operations from Ann Arbor, Michigan, to Groton, Connecticut, where Pfizer’s R&D is headquartered, will reduce the drugmaker’s employee roster in the area to about 2,500, according to the spokesman. Early last year, Pfizer announced plans to cut about 10,000 jobs and close five facilities, including Michigan research cites.
Source: Pfizer To Cut 275 Jobs From Michigan Plant // Pharmalot
Once could have at least tried to argue that preemption was worth it if it kept jobs in the state.... but no dice.