Prescription Prices-plank-Ruwart

Prescription Prices
The Deadly Secret Behind Soaring Pharmaceutical
Prices
Why Nobody Ever Told You the Deadly Secret
Pharmaceutical prices are on the rise, as anyone who takes prescription medication knows. Seniors have an especially difficult time, since, on average, they take more medications than other age groups and are often on fixed incomes.
Many industry insiders, especially those who are actually involved in discovering and developing new treatments for disease, have a pretty good idea of why prescription drug prices continue to climb. Indeed, industry insiders are the only ones likely to be aware of this deadly secret. Even a dedicated journalist would have a difficult time uncovering it without some inside assistance.
The public rarely hears of the real story behind soaring pharmaceutical prices, because industry insiders are hesitant to step forward. Sharing the deadly secret would make their job difficult and might even endanger the financial solvency of their company. Still, many would speak out if they thought they would be believed. However, with all the misinformation the public has received, it’s likely a whistleblower would be viewed as “selfserving;” they certainly would be labeled “politically incorrect.” Why risk so much when no one is likely to believe you anyway?
I understand their dilemma. Between 1976 and 1995, I was a research scientist working in a major pharmaceutical firm. My job was to discover and develop new drugs. Like many of my colleagues, I had a good idea of why drug prices were on the rise. When I hinted at the deadly secret to people outside the industry, I was met with considerable skepticism.
The situation has greatly changed. In the last few years, new research has surfaced which makes it possible to actually estimate the cost—in lives and money—of the deadly secret behind soaring pharmaceutical prices. Even though I had suspected the cost was large, I had greatly underestimated it. I was shocked when I looked at the numbers: as many as one out of three Americans who have died of disease since 1962 need not have done so!
Virtually every family in the United States has been affected by the deadly secret. Since most new pharmaceuticals still originate in the United States, the deadly secret has rippled out into the world, costing even more lives and money.
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Mary Ruwart
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