This story was originally reported a few years ago by CBS News, but I ran across it today via this student blog.
The story is that Bayer came out with a drug for hemophiliacs that was found to be tainted with the HIV-virus. The FDA blocked Bayer from releasing the drug in the U.S., but the company went ahead and sold it in France, Spain and Japan. Bayer, of course, denies any wrong-doing.
I wanted to post this story for a couple of reasons. One, so that I could mention Progressive U, which bills itself as "the new media voice for students," and seems to be a growing portal for young people interested in civic engagement through the Internet.
I also wanted to focus attention on the pharmaceutical companies who are in the business of "Selling Sickness," as author Ray Moynihan puts it. As Moynihan notes in his excellent book, even when pharmaceutical companies are not engaged in the kind of egregious behavior that Bayer is accused of, they are actively pursuing the creation of new diseases and conditions for which that they can then sell us "cures," at great profit to them and tremendous cost to the consumer. It's too bad Bayer felt the need to expand beyond the business of selling aspirin, which seems to be one of the few miracle drugs. Clearly, the huge profits of the pharmaceuticals are a higher priority for them than good health. And, these profits, in turn, influence politics in Washington around health care. No wonder we have no national health care.
7 comments:
The pharmaceutical companies never fail to amaze me. Once an "insider", working for the largest drug company out there, I thought I had seen it all, but everytime I hear reports like these, I realize I had not. My experience really made me very cynical, but I think for good reason.
I completly agree that pharmacautical compaines are profit orientated and that it is not in their best interest to improve health but to have people buy their product. I deal with pharmaceutical reps often at work and I dont like them they are all dressed up and polished and super nice and give you great stuff for free. To me that is totaly profit orientated behaviour.
This is so enlightening and makes you think about all the diseases and sicknesses there are and at teh same time how may different medications that claim they can either cure you or suppress the symptoms. Is this why we have anti-viral meds but no definite cure for HIV/AIds which is probable the most lucrative disease around? You are taking 20 pills a day for the rest of your life. The longer you live the more money they make. hmmm!!! makes you think.
I also wanted to mention the new expansion of johnson and johnson. The company that makes you feel smooth and baby fresh will now be working on your cholesterol, diabetes, and i even heard anti-virals. They have bought pfizer is well known for many top name brand pharmaceuticals. I guess the dough will be rolling in for them.
I even see ads on television from pharmaceutical companies that mention normal behaviors that people may have and label them as a "symptom" that needs some "cure". I swear you watch some of these ads and it makes you feel like all your friends have some sickness that needs medicine.
I believe Johnson & Johnson is "just" buying Pfizer's comsumer health division, which means all of the non-pharmaceutical goods.....Listerine, lubriderm, etc....the things you probably didn't even know that Pfizer owned. But Chev, you aren't far off...Johnson & Johnson, the smooth baby fresh people already have several smaller pharmaceutical companies that they own....they just run them under different names (Ortho-McNeil, Jansen to name 2), most likely so you won't associate the J&J name with the evil drug companies.
This reminds me of during the Clinton administration when they were trying to get pharmaceutical companies to lower the price of the HIV cocktail meds for third world countries and they basically refused. Some organizations, like th Clinton Foundation is working on getting reduced priced meds to developing countries.
This reminds me of during the Clinton administration when they were trying to get pharmaceutical companies to lower the price of the HIV cocktail meds for third world countries and they basically refused. Some organizations, like th Clinton Foundation is working on getting reduced priced meds to developing countries.
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