The Big Pharma Sellout
The Bill that was passed by the Senate that was supposed to protect the health, wellbeing, and wallets of the American People from a wealth of problems with prescription drugs was so weakened in committee before its passage that it ended up doing MUCH MORE HARM than it did good. And the Senators who overturned important safeguards in the Bill have received campaign donations from Big Pharma. Why does it not surprise me that Senator Arlen Specter is on the list of Senators who sold out his constituency yet again? USA Today has a list of the Senators who sold out to the Drug Companies.
This Bill was introduced in response to the Vioxx debacle. After it was found that Vioxx killed people, and was kept on the market despite Merck and the FDA knowing this, a study was done to figure out how to ensure the safety of new drugs and protect patients. The study recommended that advertising be banned on new drugs for the first two years after release so that efficacy and safety could be better judged before broad promotion, that ALL clinical studies done by Big Pharma prior to FDA approval be made available instead of just the positive ones, that post-market safety studies be made mandatory, and that the FDA be restructured to avoid conflicts of interest by isolating the FDA scientists that would do those post-approval studies from the scientists who grant approvals. The Bill, as originally written, would also have allowed the importation of prescription drugs from other countries, allowing increased competition and the probability of a lowering of drug pricing to US to the roughly 30% lower prices that other countries, such as Canada and Mexico, enjoy.
The Bill we got instead gave the FDA increased power with less oversight and no mechanism for a lessening of conflict of interest. In fact, it appears that the FDA is now being EMPLOYED by Big Pharma, which is the biggest conflict of interest of all time. The Bill we got instead means that municipalities, the US Taxpayer through Medicare and Medicaid, and other US Corporations will be paying through the nose for Health Insurance Coverage since drug prices will remain high, making US Corporations less competitive with those in other countries since those costs will be passed on in their goods and services. The Bill we got instead still allows Drug Companies to advertise new products, resulting in approximately HALF of the US population being on some sort of chronic drug prescription therapy, which also keeps us as a nation bankrupt and trashes our environment since wastewater treatment plants cannot filter out trace drugs that end up in them (prozac is detectable in most large city wastewater in alarming amounts.) The Bill we got instead gives the FDA and Drug Companies more power and US citizens less. The Bill we got instead ensures that Prescription Drugs will remain one of the biggest causes of Death in the US.
We are still not sure whether the Amendment which protects dietary supplements from further regulation was in fact incorporated into the bill passed by the Senate. Though the language of the amendment certainly making silk out of a sow’s ear, according to Dr. Laibow of the Natural Solutions Foundation, “Now that is good news but you will notice that the Durban Amendment does nothing whatsoever to protect foods and products not covered by DSHEA. This is a significant loophole and one which the House MUST correct if we are to have meaningful health freedom in this country.”
There is now a companion Bill in the House. Please call or write to your Representatives to let them know what we think of the Senate’s sellout. The Congressional switchboard number, which is best for recording your call and its concern, is 202-224-3121.
Technorati Tags: Big Pharma Lobbying, Drug Companies, Campaign Reform, Senate Bribes, Prescription Drug Prices, Medicare, Health Costs
