Public Citizen is an American non-profit, progressive

consumer rights Consumer protection is the practice of safeguarding buyers of goods and services, and the public, against unfair practices in the marketplace. Consumer protection measures are often established by law. Such laws are intended to prevent businesse ...

advocacy group Advocacy groups, also known as lobby groups, interest groups, special interest groups, pressure groups, or public associations, use various forms of advocacy or lobbying to influence public opinion and ultimately public policy. They play an impor ...

, and

think tank A think tank, or public policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, technology, and culture. Most think tanks are non-governme ...

based in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

It was founded in 1971 by the American activist and lawyer

Ralph Nader Ralph Nader (; born February 27, 1934) is an American lawyer and political activist involved in consumer protection, environmentalism, and government reform causes. He is a Perennial candidate, perennial presidential candidate. His 1965 book '' ...

Lobbying efforts

Public Citizen advocates before all three branches of the

United States federal government The Federal Government of the United States of America (U.S. federal government or U.S. government) is the Federation#Federal governments, national government of the United States. The U.S. federal government is composed of three distinct ...

. Its five divisions include Congress Watch; Energy; Global Trade Watch; the Health Research Group; and

Public Citizen Litigation Group Public Citizen Litigation Group is a public interest law firm in the United States. The group is the litigation arm of the non-profit consumer advocacy organization Public Citizen. Its attorneys work on cases involving health and safety regulation, ...

, a nationally prominent public interest law firm founded by Alan Morrison and known for its Supreme Court and appellate practice. Among other issues, Public Citizen has been a public voice on

drug pricing Medication costs, also known as drug costs are a common health care cost for many people and health care systems. Prescription costs are the costs to the end consumer. Medication costs are influenced by multiple factors such as patents, stakeholde ...

. For example, they advocated for

Gilead Sciences Gilead Sciences, Inc. () is an American biopharmaceutical company headquartered in Foster City, California, that focuses on researching and developing antiviral drugs used in the treatment of HIV/AIDS, hepatitis B, hepatitis C, influenza, and CO ...

to test

GS-441524 GS-441524 is a nucleoside analogue antiviral drug which was developed by Gilead Sciences. It is the main plasma metabolite of the antiviral prodrug remdesivir, and has a half-life of around 24 hours in human patients. Remdesivir and GS-441524 w ...

, a cheaper alternative to

remdesivir Remdesivir, sold under the brand name Veklury, Text was copied from this source which is copyright European Medicines Agency. Reproduction is authorized provided the source is acknowledged. is a Broad-spectrum antiviral drug, broad-spectrum ...

History

In 1968, Nader recruited seven volunteer law students, dubbed "Nader's Raiders" by the Washington press corps, to evaluate the efficacy and operation of the

Federal Trade Commission The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is an independent agency of the United States government whose principal mission is the enforcement of civil (non-criminal) United States antitrust law, antitrust law and the promotion of consumer protection. It ...

(FTC). The group's ensuing report, which criticized the body as "ineffective" and "passive" led to an

American Bar Association The American Bar Association (ABA) is a voluntary association, voluntary bar association of lawyers and law students in the United States; national in scope, it is not specific to any single jurisdiction. Founded in 1878, the ABA's stated acti ...

investigation of the FTC. Based on the results of that second study,

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 until Resignation of Richard Nixon, his resignation in 1974. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican ...

revitalized the agency and sent it on a path of vigorous consumer protection and antitrust enforcement for the rest of the 1970s. Nader's Raiders became involved in such issues as nuclear safety, international trade, regulation of insecticides, meat processing, pension reform, land use, and banking. Following the publication of the report, Nader founded Public Citizen in 1971 to engage in public interest lobbying and activism on issues of consumer rights. He served on its board of directors until 1980.Nader Forms Unit to Seek Donations
. ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

''. June 2, 1971. p. 16. Retrieved 2017-09-21.

People associated with Public Citizen

, founder * Joan Claybrook, first executive director * Lisa Gilbert, current co-president * Robert Weissman, current co-president * Donna Edwards, former

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

* Alan Morrison, co-founder * Paul Alan Levy litigator on labor and free speech issues * Mark Green, former

New York City Public Advocate The office of New York City Public Advocate (President of the City Council) is a citywide elected position in New York City, which is first in line to succeed the Mayor of New York City, mayor. The office serves as a direct link between the wikti ...

* Peter Maybarduk, director, Access to Medicines *Melinda St. Louis, director, Global Trade Watch * Lori Wallach, founder, Global Trade Watch * Sidney M. Wolfe, director, Health Research Group *

Phil Radford Philip David Radford (born January 2, 1976) is an American consumer and conservation leader, currently serving as the President and CEO of Consumer Reports, a nonpartisan nonprofit organization that works with consumers to foster truth, transpare ...

, former organizer, Global Trade Watch * Wenonah Hauter, executive director,

Food & Water Watch Food & Water Watch is a Washington, D.C.-based non-governmental organization group with an office also in Los Angeles, California, which focuses on corporate and government accountability relating to food, water, and corporate overreach. Resulting ...

References

External links

Public Citizen Website
{{authority control Dupont Circle Government watchdog groups in the United States Political advocacy groups in the United States Organizations established in 1971 Ralph Nader Progressive organizations in the United States

Lobbying efforts

History

People associated with Public Citizen

See also

References

External links