John Phelan

Dr. Phelan is an associate professor of economics and has been associated with UNH since 1992. Dr. Phelan brings twenty-one (21) years of federal government executive experience to his Business and Society (EC 629 ) class including eight (8) years as an executive assistant to the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) during the Reagan-Bush administration where he advised the Secretary on Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issues. His major accomplishments during this period involved the revision of the drug approval process and the removal of FDA barriers to advertising of prescription drugs directly to consumers.

Prior to going over to HHS, Dr. Phelan was a research economist at the Federal Trade Commission where he was involved in the FTC's efforts to reduce state and professional barriers to competition in the medical, optometry, veterinarian and other professions. The FTC published two research studies by Dr. Phelan (w/other authors) involving legal barriers to competition in the professions. Dr. Phelan's current research interests involve the measuring of the social costs and benefits resulting from the advertising of prescription drugs to consumers.

In addition to his research and teaching, Dr. Phelan is a labor arbitrator and has served the State of Connecticut as Chief of Staff of the Ct Department of Consumer Protection for a year while on a leave of absence from UNH in 1995.