I am going to talk about two folks today that really deserve our thanks. Oh, sure, they won the Nobel Prize- but their path was pretty perturbed.
Continue reading A noble effort yields a Nobel
I went for my booster shot. About 3 weeks before I am departing for my trip to Israel. That way I should have the prime immunity against COVID, as I travel through the airport and am stuck on an airplane for 10 or 11 hours.
You know, we have some pretty great products that can keep us very safe during this pandemic.
Between the Pfizer/BioNTech, Moderna, and Janssen (J&J) vaccines, the odds of us getting COVID-19 are very low. Of course, given the plethora of Anti-Vaxxers, we- the entire population- can still be at risk. Because no vaccine is 100% effective- effectivity is based upon dosage and frequency of contact.
Continue reading A bigger arsenal
We are attempting to overcome this pandemic with one hand (maybe both) tied behind our backs. We’ve seen the wholesale eradication of scientists and engineers that formed the backbone of our government- from agencies like EPA, Agriculture, Interior Affairs. We’ve wiped away all the professional leadership of the National Intelligence Agency. More to the point, we’ve even seen the pandemic response team dismissed.
Continue reading Harnessing Academia and Industry
This problem has been coming and going for a while. For want of a small item, hospitals and clinics are brought to their knees.
Continue reading For Want of a Nail?
A dozen years ago, Vioxx was given the axe. This pain medicine, developed by Merck, was considered to be a menace. Because the risk of heart attacks were much higher than expected.
Continue reading NSAID Safety?
This will be the first in a series of discussions about what is going on with and among big pharma [the pharmaceutical industry]. But, really, this specific post is more about the corporate taxation process in America and the world.
Continue reading Merger or Tax Ploy?
Pharmaceutical research has changed. There’s the soaring price of drug development, the dearth of blockbuster drugs, and the precipitous drop in patents. That does not include the megamergers that have occurred over the past decade. Only 11 of the 42 large firms that were members of the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturer’s Association (PhRMA) 13 years ago survive today. The pharmaceutical firms have lost favor on Wall Street- with their market capitalization decimated. That’s true even though the sales of the top 10 drugs have doubled in the past decade and the number of biologics in the top 10 has risen (and will dominate the top 10 soon enough). The number of blockbuster drugs launched has not really changed- but their value has dropped.
Continue reading What can one person do?
