CHICAGO, Nov. 10 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Speaking at a Cardiovascular Summit of more than 150 cardiovascular experts here in advance of the American Heart Association's annual Scientific Sessions 2006, Fred Hassan, Schering-Plough chairman and chief executive officer, set out an agenda for the newly elected U.S. Congress when it convenes in January. Calling health care a "pivotal" issue, Hassan urged the incoming lawmakers to "keep just one thing in mind as you create a health care agenda: Do what is right for the patient. Do that, and many tough issues will get resolved -- in the right way." "A Moral Obligation" Hassan said that the lawmakers have a "moral obligation" to "play for the long term. As a nation, and as a society, we are counting on you. Our children and their children are counting on you." Hassan also called on the new Congress to recognize that biopharmaceutical research is vital to the success of the U.S. economy. "We are losing our auto industry to Asia. We are losing our computer industry to Asia. Don't let this one get away from us." Hassan said that a key to sustaining biopharmaceutical research is to preserve the strength and independence of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Saying that the FDA is a "vital asset" for the country, Hassan urged the new Congress to "give the FDA the resources it needs to do its job. And protect the FDA from being politicized." Good Managed Care vs. Low-Quality Care In his remarks to the cardiovascular experts, Hassan also commented on managed care, saying that the challenge ahead involves "tension between short-term cost-containment versus quality health care delivery, for the long term." "We are seeing good managed care, and we are also seeing low-quality managed care," said Hassan. "Good managed care is focused on the total health of the patient, for the long term. And this is also cost effective, for the long term. "Low-quality managed care is over-focused on short-term cost saving. This is bad for the patient, and it is also bad for the health budgets -- long term. Would we rather control obesity by investing in better patient education, diet and exercise early on -- or pay enormous personal and societal costs from an epidemic of diabetes later?" Managed Care Scorecards To promote good managed care practices, Hassan proposed the introduction of scorecards for managed care organizations that would rate them on the percentage of their covered patients who reach a set of medically endorsed goals. Hassan proposed scorecarding on the following metrics: * Reduction in obesity; * Reduction in the incidence of asthma; * Smoking avoidance, reduction and cessation; * Increasing exercise; * Control of blood sugar; * Control of high blood pressure; * Control of high LDL ("bad") cholesterol; * Immunizations and vaccinations. Said Hassan: "With this kind of a simple, do-able scorecard approach, I believe we would begin to see a significant improvement in patient health. And we would also see a cost-containment trend, versus the escalating health care cost trend that we are facing in the United States and in all societies." Schering-Plough is a global science-based health care company with leading prescription, consumer and animal health products. Through internal research and collaborations with partners, Schering-Plough discovers, develops, manufactures and markets advanced drug therapies to meet important medical needs. Schering-Plough's vision is to earn the trust of the physicians, patients and customers served by its more than 32,000 people around the world. The company is based in Kenilworth, N.J., and its Web site is http://www.schering-plough.com/. DATASOURCE: Schering-Plough Corporation CONTACT: Media: Steve Galpin, Jr., +1-908-298-7415, or Investors: Alex Kelly, +1-908-298-7436, both of Schering-Plough Corporation Web site: http://www.schering-plough.com/ Company News On-Call: http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/777050.html

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