Work Place Stress

In 1962 the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) was
formed by law to oversee drugs and foods placed on
the market for public consumption. The purpose of the
FDA is to provide an unbiased review of the products
to insure the safety for public consumption.

Since the FDA is a part of the government, it has
been affected by budget cuts. These budget cuts
caused a backlog of drugs and foods waiting to be
approved or disapproved. Drug companies were able to
use this situation to their advantage by bringing
pressure on Congress which approved deadlines
on the FDA.

Congress passed the legislation in 1992 with an
agreement that made drug companies pay millions
of dollar in fees to the FDA to hire more reviewers to
assist in clearing out 90% of the backlog. For this
fee the drug company received a money back
guarantee to have “lifesaving” or “high priority“drugs
processed within six months after submission to the FDA.

Other drugs would be processed within one year. If the
drug companies are paying for a guarantee that a
process is to be completed, does this impose any bias
upon the reviewers?

If someone is paying the reviewers to review their products,
I believe those reviewers will be bias toward the product.

Research showed that products like “Vioxx”,”Bextra”,
Rezuillin”, and “Baycal”, were all approved within the
two months before their deadlines. The results were
ultimately all the named drugs were eventually
removed from the market place.

Another tactic the drugs companies use is to have
former company employees on the review broads. How
can these former employees prove unbiased reviews of
products that they may have help formulate or been
responsible for producing?

No matter what happens as long as drug companies
are able to influence by direct or indirect means the
reviewers of the FDA, there will not be an unbiased
process. The FDA is needed to review the safety of
drugs and foods for public consumption.
T
he problem is how do we remove the drug companies
influence over the FDA’s decisions? Is America’s health
and safety being bought by big
drug companies monies?

The Americanhealth and safety is now taking backseat
to the FDA’s bottom line.

As TV has become more popular, the proliferation of
drugs advertisements has increased. At the beginning
there were only a few commercials for over the counter
types medications such as “Geritol”, “Alka-seltzer”, and
Peptobismol”. None of these require a doctor signature f
or purchase.

The drug companies found that TV commercials paid
“big bucks” in selling results. The TV commercials cost
more than doctors or pharmacists educating the public,
but the commercials were viewed by millions of people.

Slowly the public was educated to the use of various
drugs and the great benefits that they provided! The
end results are that now more people know about the
various drugs than ever before.

Some people even ask their doctors for a particular
drug when seeking treatments. The doctors are now
consulting patients who have a limited knowledge of
drugs and their affects on the human system. This
leads to a mentality that patients seem to think they
are just as educated as their doctors. As the saying
goes “a little bit of knowledge can be very dangerous”.

Does the large drug companies care about the
doctor’s dilemma? NO.

Are the drug companies worried that the public will
harm themselves? NO.

All that matters to the drug companies is the revenue
keeps coming from the increase drug sales.

To them, IT’S THE BOTTOM LINE!!!

Have you ever noticed TV commercials from drugs
companies? There is always something wrong, an upset
stomach, a headache or the “fear of being with people”.
And their solution the “Magic Pill”. The person in the
commercial just takes the pill and in an instant they
are well again.

One commercial comes to mind. Its late with the lights
on in only one house. You are taken inside to see a
man sitting on the side of the bed in pajamas, rubbing
his stomach and saying “I can’t believe I ate the whole
thing”.

The sympathetic female hands him the “magic pill” and
e takes it. Then the screen goes dark and you hear a
sigh of relief. The implied message - the “Magic Pill’
gave instant relief.

What’s wrong with the message? What happened to, if
you eat like a pig you pay later? Overeating in not good
for your digestive system. It may cause pain and
discomfort. It is your responsibility to control
your eating.

The drug company gives you an easy way out, you
overeat, we’ll fix you up will our little “Magic Pill”. See,
you can overeat as much as you want because our
“Magic Pill” will be there for you. Yup, you took the
bait, hook, line and sinker. Just attach your wallet
to the drug company’s pay me line. Then you
freely give them your money so you can overeat
without ever thinking about the final consequences
of your actions-overweight, heart problems, diabetes,
or clogged arteries.

Which one will you end up getting?

Don’t worry the drug company will have another
“Magic Pill” for you. In the end all you pay is your money
and your health.