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> America's lucrative drug market funds research That's a nice and heartwarming story. But I don't believe it for a second. When those companies want to fund r
by otikik 8y ago
> America's lucrative drug market funds research
That's a nice and heartwarming story. But I don't believe it for a second. When those companies want to fund research, they raise money from third parties. Or get it from the government in the form of grants.
No, all that money goes to someone's pocket, and mostly stays there.
- refurb 8y agoWhen those companies want to fund research, they raise money from third parties. Not the big companies. R&D is funded through the sales of current products.
- secabeen 8y agoThey do spend some of their patient revenue on R&D, but they spend more on consumer and physician marketing.
- jonlucc 8y agoShould they not? Ignoring money, if you have a product which has been shown to improve lives or increase lifespan, shouldn't you aim to make it as available as possible? In general, pharmaceuticals have to prove some benefit over the current standard of care to convince payers (insurance companies) to pay for the drug. Disclaimer: I work in big pharma, though in discovery research, nowhere near pricing and business decisions. Of course, in my position, it would be great if all pharma invested more in R&D
- secabeen 8y agoI'm not objecting to all marketing spending, but I do think it's out of line with the benefit. I would prefer to see prescription marketing be much more low-touch that it is today.
- jonlucc 8y agoMe too. I had a manager once suggest that you could set up a consortium of pharma companies based around a disease. So, for example, every company that has a drug targeted at psoriasis would buy in, then the consortium would be tasked with raising awareness that psoriasis is a treatable condition, so go talk to your doctor. Of course it has some flaws (what about companies that are first into an indication), but it might be a step better than what we have today.
- secabeen 8y agoInteresting. Very much like the milk boards and other agricultural councils that promote specific largely-fungible products.