The U.S. Pharmaceutical Supply Chain – Seen and Unseen

Mike Magee Complexity is the friend of the Medical Industrial Complex. Whether hospital, insurer, organized medicine, pharmaceutical or government agency, profitability, market advantage and career advancement can be found in the cracks of the deliberately Byzantine network. For those intent on regulating or managing the American system as it is, just understanding and unraveling the […]

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 […]

Testosterone: Another Case of Physician Enabled Drug Abuse

Ad From MedicineNet.com Mike Magee Is testosterone the next Oxycontin? It certainly has many of the same earmarks. It’s widespread abuse is being aided and abetted by sloppy prescribers. Its’ benefits are being exaggerated and its’ risks understated. It is associated with heavy marketing by pharmaceutical companies and a range of profit seeking intermediaries. And […]

An FDA Golden Voucher That’s Too Good To Be True.

Mike Magee Thirty-six years ago, as Ronald Reagan assumed the presidency, Congress cried “uncle”, in the face of America’s perceived global non-competitiveness in pharmaceuticals. They had been convinced by the persistent voices of Louis Lasagna and University of Chicago economist Sam Perltzman that there was a “drug lag” in America, and that it was the […]

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 […]

Note to FDA: Get On-Label Use Right, Before Liberalizing Off-Label Use.

Mike Magee “At my own medical center we have banned pharmaceutical reps from coming because we don’t think they are a good source of information. You don’t ask the barber if you need a haircut.” Dr. Rita Redberg, editor, JAMA Internal Medicine. What Dr. Redberg is protesting is the possibility of liberalizing the prohibition on […]

Tobacco Sales at Pharmacies?

An odd combination, but retailers are in it for the moneyA new bill pending in Congress would give much greater government oversight of tobacco and new bold graphic warnings on cigarette packages. That’s great news – if it passes. But while cigarette packaging may look different, tobacco will likely be sold in familiar aisles. And […]

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