The
Big Government-Big Pharma Complex: Disease Mongering for Fear and Profit
by
Karen De Coster
by Karen De Coster
Recently by Karen De Coster: Cash
for Clunkers, RIP
Ronit Ridberg
has given the world a marvelous look into the fraudulent, Big Government-Big
Pharma complex with
her documentary film, Big
Bucks, Big Pharma: Marketing Disease and Pushing Drugs.
It's a bit dated, from 2006, but certainly, that is no hindrance
to the message of the film. It's an hour long, but worth every minute
of your time. Below, I have compiled a list of some interesting
points from the film. I have also included a lot of my own thoughts
from my research on issues brought up in the film, so not all of
the material I have presented is contained within the documentary.
Big Pharma
is a monster that’s long been out of control, and that is due to
its chief enabler, big government, whose bureaucrats profit immensely
from promoting Big Pharma’s agenda to grow and protect its profits.
In spite of what Michael Moore would say, this arrangement is not
capitalism, or as he means it, the free market. It is state capitalism,
or, as some may call it, socialist corporatism.
-
Industry
professionals discuss how Big Pharma normalizes obscure health
problems, making them appear common in order to create a new
market with a demand for prescription drugs. One Doc interviewed
calls this "disease mongering." For example, after the commercials
appeared from GlaxoKlineSmith, suddenly everyone seemed to have
Restless Leg Syndrome.
-
Perhaps
a most disturbing trend brought up in the film is the wacky,
wild world of "things just ain't right" disorders. Whether it's
"generalized anxiety disorder," "major depressive disorder,"
"panic disorder," "acute social phobia," or finally,
the celebrated "social anxiety disorder," there's a disorder
to fit you and explain away your day-to-day problems. The film
brings up the evil Paxil, which not only utilized direct-to-consumer
marketing, but also, SmithKline Beecham took it to the print
media to sell its virtues. Reporters lined up to give the
drug gobs of attention as a solution for .... shyness.
In 1999, US News & World Report ran
a cover story, "How Shy is Too Shy?" The story
referred to "debilitating shyness" and claimed that
"roughly 1 out of every 8 people becomes so timid that
encounters with others turn into a source of overwhelming dread."
The commercial for Paxil, shown in the film, is akin to something
out of an Alfred Hitchcock movie. Also see this marvelously
hilarious story by Seth Stevenson, "Extroverted
Like Me: How a Month and a Half on Paxil Taught Me to Love Being
Shy." Written in 2001, Seth is an introvert who experimented
with Paxil for forty-five days so he could write a splendid
story highlighting the ineffectiveness and life-changing aspects
of a powerful, mind-altering drug.
- Premenstrual
Dysphoric Disorder (PMDD) is a fabricated "disorder."
Sarafem, the drug created to treat the non-condition, was nothing
more than Prozac repackaged for a new disease. Eli Lilly was losing
its exclusive patent to Prozac. Drug patents, as we know, bring
drug companies billions in revenues. Sarafem was Prozac,
except that it was colored a pretty pink – such a pretty and precious
detail for a lady going on her monthly psychotic binge and emotional
release. So, an old drug, a new disorder, and a new patent,
and Eli Lilly could make a bundle, at least until (or if)
the deception caught on with drug consumers. After Warner-Chilcott
acquired the U.S. sales and marketing rights to Sarafem, it successfully
fought off an attempt from Teva Pharmaceuticals to make a
generic version. The film notes that when executives from Eli
Lilly met with the FDA to discuss approval of the drug for its
made-up disorder, one-third of the members of the FDA committee
had ties to Eli
Lilly. This is from the
website of Warner-Chilcott:
PMDD is
a distinct medical condition. Common symptoms include irritability,
sadness, sudden mood changes, tension, bloating, and breast
tenderness. The many symptoms of PMDD can markedly interfere
with your daily activities and relationships and can make you
feel out of control. Some women describe PMDD as frustrating,
surprising, tiring, or even isolating. It can take away your
enjoyment of family, friends, or work. Some think it's part
of being a woman or PMS (Premenstrual Syndrome). But for millions
it is PMDD.
Also see
Alice Rebensdorf’s 2001 superb article on Prozac-turned-Sarafem:
Sarafem:
The Pimping of Prozac for PMS.
-
Then there’s
Prilosec, developed by Astra-Merck (which became AstraZeneca),
which was one of the best-selling prescription drugs of all
time. In five years, revenues from the drug totaled
$26 billion. The company went to court and won extra months
of protection to sell Prilosec exclusively while it was working
on its successor, Nexium. This drug was Prilosec repackaged
in a pretty purple with yellow stripes, and it was marketed
as the "purple pill." The two drugs had a different
active ingredient that did the same thing. The price of Nexium
was almost seven times that of Prilosec, and it came with a
new patent. In one year, almost $500 million was spent on promoting
its use. One commercial in the film shows a precious purple
pill floating lazily above the earth, as if to hypnotize the
sheeple viewer.
-
Move on
to Phizer’s Lipitor, which quickly became the best selling pharmaceutical
drug in history. Lipitor is a me-too (copycat) drug which was
preceded by Mevacor, Pravachol, and Zocor. The film makes the
obvious connection between the statin drug explosion – especially
the sales of Lipitor – and the changing of cholesterol guidelines
recommending much lower target levels for LDL cholesterol. This,
of course, would lead to the huge boost in statin drug use.
Out of the nine cholesterol "experts" who worked on
the new guidelines, it was reported that six of them had financial
ties (speaking fees, research grants, etc.) to drug companies.
Changing the guidelines redefines what it means to be sick.
More "sick" people will allow for more drugs to be
prescribed. Under the new guidelines, millions of people will
be on statin drugs for the rest of their lives.
-
The facts
at the time of the film: at least one million children under
the age of eighteen are taking anti-depressants. Normal teenage
anxieties became a profitable "illness" for Big Pharma.
-
Medical
and pharmaceutical professionals talk about the massive and
costly effort on the part of pharmaceutical companies to purchase
doctor loyalty. They evade the rules by categorizing all activities
as "education," and therefore all the shenanigans
are legal, and that includes kickbacks to MDs. Big Pharma tracks
these doctors and what they prescribe, so they know what to
spend and where to spend it.
-
Also brought
up in the film is the Big Pharma president, George W. Bush.
Appointed Bush cronies in the FDA assisted Bush in the interfering
with FDA sanction letters for advertising infractions that were
to be sent to pharmaceutical companies. Anything to fill the
Republican campaign coffers.
-
Congressional
legislation – from those who purport to serve your interests
in government – promotes and serves the pharmaceutical industry
with its laws and agencies. The agents of government benefit
financially from protecting Big Pharma and its profits though
patents, agency rulemaking, and political pandering.
The day before
I put this together, I was at my doctor’s office. He’s a D.O., and
highly sympathetic to holistic health and homeopathic remedies,
which is why I decided on him as my primary traditional MD. I had
heard him appear often on a local AM radio morning show, and I liked
his take on natural solutions and preventative health. This was
about fifteen years ago when I was first starting to make major
changes toward all things natural. While waiting in the room for
the Doc, I couldn’t help but notice, more than ever, that every
item in the room had a Big Pharma label on it. This includes the
box of facial tissues, the wastebaskets, and the pens. The office
area was also littered with Big Pharma’s gifts. Do people find this
eerie, if not sinister?
October
10, 2009
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At the
Tennessee farm, July 2009. |
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Karen DeCoster
[send her mail]
is a libertarian accounting/finance professional and writer. She
rides a Harley, shoots lots of guns, and buys Boston Legal DVDs.
She likes to put in long miles on her hybrid bicycle, lift heavy
weights, use the crock-pot, overindulge on Gouda cheese, do
primal workouts, play Frisbee, get lost in the woods,
and hang out at Bass Pro Shops. She won’t trade in her clunker for
cash and it is highly unlikely that she will become a Czar in the
Obama administration. She openly advocates resistance to the current
regime in power. This is her LewRockwell.com
archive and her Mises.org
archive. Check out her website.
Copyright ©
2009 Karen DeCoster
The
Best of Karen De Coster
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