Substituting Robust Marketing For Scientific Evidence: Industry Pursues Legal “Free Hand” For Off-Label Promotion.

SOURCE: OFF LABEL: A FILM Mike Magee Over the past fourteen years, the pharmaceutical industry in the U.S. has successfully beaten back proposals to allow drug reimportation from Canada. These proposals were advanced by multiple members of Congress and big city mayors, and were supported by the majority of Americans. But President Bush, in negotiations […]

Calling PhRMA’s Bluff: 15 Ways To Bring US Drug Costs Under Control

Mike Magee Historically, U.S. insurers have been relatively permissive when it comes to pharmaceuticals. Most drugs were covered and reimbursed generously. That reflected two realities: drugs were a relatively small piece of the over all health care cost, and denying certain drugs coverage on formulary lists was almost always a public relations nightmare, angering both […]

Why Bill Maher is Right About Marijuana – But Also Terribly Wrong.

Source: HBOWatch Mike Magee Bill Maher prides himself on logic and clarity, and of course, in-your-face, biting humor. This is on full display during his “New Rules” segment, with which he closes each show. He is especially well known for his personal and professional advocacy for the legalization of marijuana. His major points are that […]

The Generic Bandwagon

How generic medicines fit into the big picture of health care It came as a surprise to some recently when we learned that the average price of pharmaceuticals grew last year at a much lower rate than other consumer categories, such as groceries and gas. What’s going on? Why have some drug prices leveled off? […]