That didn’t take long.
In mid-December, we released a short video that summarized a few items of interest from 2018. We also offered a few predictions for 2019.
One of them was increased anti-pharma rhetoric from politicians and those who follow them.
This was triggered by an article in the excellent Pharmafocus magazine, where a politician running for office described pharmaceutical companies as “…worse than the Taliban.”
You can read this nonsense here.
Not to be outdone, soon-to-be presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren (from Massachusetts of all places) made this statement on Twitter:
Fortunately, there have been many responses to this comment from Senator Warren from those in the industry who know better:
This is not the first time we hear anti-pharma rhetoric from Senator Warren. In early 2018, Senator Warren proposed a scheme requiring drug companies who enter into settlements with the Federal government to pay the NIH and FDA 1% of annual profits from drugs which emerged from government-sponsored research.
This was followed by another “whack pharma” proposal to have the federal government manufacture generic drugs in order to save money…a proposal which was eloquently discussed by Derek Lowe.
For those who are not in the industry, these proposal might sound appealing, especially the notion of shifting generic manufacturing away from greedy companies and towards the government.
But seriously, can any government produce any product? Of course not. This is exactly why government have contracts with private and public companies to produce what is needed.
Perhaps the federal government is paying too much for ball point pens. Should Washington bureaucrats get into the ball point pen manufacturing business?
We are not claiming that our industry is perfect, or that pharma company management teams consist of perfect little angels. However, our industry treats and cures diseases, alleviates pain and suffering, and extends the lives of the chronically ill.
Even with our faults, we have much to be proud of.
Politicians like Senator Warren shouldn’t be targeting us. They should be seeking funding to build bronze statues of the many scientists, investors, administrators, analysts, consultants, and many other individuals who all contribute, in their own way, to the good things our industry does and will continue to do.
So why would a politician (from Massachusetts, of all places) make a statement like this?
Clearly, targeting our industry is a way to generate voter sentiment, and eventually votes. But politicians who do this are either delusional, ignorant, or outright lying.
Indeed, this tactic of blaming a vaguely-defined enemy for a problem in order to gain voter favor is nothing new. Pick up any 20th Century history book (or read Orwell’s 1984) for numerous examples.
Keep this in mind when Election Day comes around, and choose wisely.