The Problems of Avandia: Another Example of Failed Big Government
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Friday, 24 September 2010 05:18 |
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The NYT had a front page article on the decision by regulators in the United States and Europe to restrict access to Avandia, a major drug for treating diabetes. The reason for the restriction was a new study that linked the drug to tens of thousands of heart attacks.
This assessment was based on an independent analysis of data from GlaxoSmithKline, the manufacturer of the drug. GlaxoSmithKline did not do (or report) this analysis itself even though it had the data. The patent monopoly on Avandia granted by the government gave GlaxoSmithKline a strong incentive not to find the potential dangers of its drug. This failure of big government should have been noted in this article. (There are more efficient alternatives to patent monopolies for supporting prescription drug research.)
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Just because there's thousands of heart attacks doesn't mean the net benefits are still not positive. You don't stop eating just because your kidneys are loaded with fructose do you. Well there you go.
Besides, it acts to clear out the gene pool of those more prone to diabetes anyway because they're more prone to heart attacks as well. This increases average productivity from a Darwinian perspective.
All it takes is disclosure with a warning label to advise those making a free choice in a free market of what they're getting:
*Notice: In taking this drug, you may be giving up your life so others can live, in which case it should be treated it like an organ donation gone wrong.