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Popular commercial prescription medications used to treat pain or depression are linked to homicidal, suicidal behavior. Whenever you watch the news and hear about some person who is otherwise normal committing a really violent or crazy act chances are they were under the influence of one of these drugs.
For many years I've felt like Cunucu Beach, no new drugs for me, anything I do take at all must have a proven positive track record.
I see that almost everyone here is clear that pharmaceutical companies don't have our best interest in mind, but for those who seem to think it's "a given", well, you apparently haven't encountered people who put all their faith in the meds their doctors prescribe.
That may have been OK 30 years ago when people established a trusting relationship with a doctor and they had more time to read medical journals, but thanks to all the insurance stuff doctors have to see more patients these days and the 5 min. visits we get hardly qualify as a basis for trust. I for one was shocked when my pharmacist told me years ago that doctors were offered all kinds of perks for recommending drugs, especially new ones, so the least scrupulous doctors will push those that have offered them the better benefits. I particularly remember a young doctor about 10 years ago whom I actually liked, who wanted to put me on high blood pressure medication, luckily when I went back to see him my reading was much lower, then he was close to prescribing something to lower my blood sugar when my test was a little high, but I also reduced it through diet, then because I had some bone loss he wanted me to take Fosamax but I refused, and boy am I glad because it turned out to be another bad one.
Another example are statins which have been prescribed right and left but they cause extensive muscle damage and have even left some people paralyzed. Just last year I had a roommate who I think was taking Lipitor and she complained all the time of terrible pain and swelling in her arms and hands, she cared for small children but some days she could hardly pick up the little ones or open jars, etc., she's a very active person so that was pretty devastating for her. Then I received an e-mail from a contact about the danger of statin drugs and I had a hunch that was her problem and told her so. She decided to stop it and almost immediately her pain went away, luckily it was not too late for her because the greatest irony of this is that since the heart is a muscle over time it's going to get damaged just like the arms or legs so many of the people taking the drug may have or could end up having a heart attack actually because of the drug.
Big Pharma has no goal to cure anything. In fact, they try to kill any kind of research that actually may lead to a cure. There is no money in curing anything.
Furthermore, most new drugs are not new drugs at all. Patents on old drugs run out and the manufacturers make a small change to produce a new drug, which in effect is no different than the old drug, but it costs 10 times as much.
But someone else can produce the old drug ten times less.
In order for Medicare Part D to pass Congress under GWB, the government signed away it's right to negotiate prescription drug prices. That's one thing I will never forgive Congress and the Bush administration for doing. To make matters even worse, Obama solidified the same prohibition through back room deals with Billy Tauzen (drug lobby) to also guarantee that the government could never negotiate prescription drug prices if it wanted Big Pharma's support for Obamacare. Obama and Democrats were so narrow-minded in its pursuit of UHC that it gave up it's right to EVER negotiate lower drug prices. Obamacare and Medicare Part D were legislative golden tickets to charge whatever Big Pharma wants while sticking the tab to taxpayers.
My concern is not Big Pharma. My concern is the United States Government.
As someone who's worked in Pharma before as a scientist, I can say with 100% accuracy that yes WE DO care a lot about trying to help people and make the world a better place. The problem comes with upper management and marketers. People don't realize that the one drug a pharma company does get through for approval has to cost $100 a pill because it is also paying for the 10 other research programs that failed.
On the flip side, however, big pharma tends to only spend less than 30% of the profits it generates back into R and D. It's no wonder then why pipelines are drying up all over the place and Pharma has been getting hammered.
As someone who's worked in Pharma before as a scientist, I can say with 100% accuracy that yes WE DO care a lot about trying to help people and make the world a better place. The problem comes with upper management and marketers. People don't realize that the one drug a pharma company does get through for approval has to cost $100 a pill because it is also paying for the 10 other research programs that failed.
On the flip side, however, big pharma tends to only spend less than 30% of the profits it generates back into R and D. It's no wonder then why pipelines are drying up all over the place and Pharma has been getting hammered.
It sounds like Big Pharma is similar to Big Oil.....both seem to get paid more for producing less.
I don't understand... is there a company that you can trust?
No. It is consumer pressure that tends to keep companies honest. How many people really know about the science behind the drugs they take? The FDA is also heavily biased towards profitable drugs not useful ones because it is the producer that must fund the FDA approval. Stevia really opened my eyes to how it work. Vioxx was prescribed over aspirin in my opinion, just because....
We buy more and more products we really don't understand fully.
Location: planet octupulous is nearing earths atmosphere
13,621 posts, read 12,741,650 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by evilnewbie
I don't understand... is there a company that you can trust?
i've learned one universal truth about big corp, and that is they care for only one thing only, the bottom____________________________________________ ______________________________________________line
i've learned one universal truth about big corp, and that is they care for only one thing only, the bottom____________________________________________ ______________________________________________line
The same is true about a lemonade stand.
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