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If the overall sentiment behind the bullet points are true, WOW. From what I can tell - this is a digital pill-mill targeting some of the most vulnerable membe

If the overall sentiment behind the bullet points are true, WOW. From what I can tell - this is a digital pill-mill targeting some of the most vulnerable members of modern society. Pardon my french here, but how the fuck was this able to IPO? And more than that, what firms actually bought into this? EDIT: not every facet of the Health/Wellness/Medical industry needs to be subject to Wall Street's rules. Why don't people understand that by now?

15457345234 3y ago
Let me guess, this is one of those online-only adderall-pushers that grew enormously during the pandemic, right?
- gs17 3y ago
  They pushed more than just Adderall, of course: > • LifeStance deals in controlled substances and medications like Xanax and Adderall that have huge potential for abuse, with prescription volume growth rivaling opiate prescriptions at their peak, according to health professionals. > • Despite the potentially addictive nature of some of these medications, former LifeStance employees claim that medication prescribers have been advised to cut consultation times to maximize revenue, with some former clinicians having seen “30 patients a day”. Others described it as akin to “war medicine.” > • LifeStance also rewarded its “highest-performing” medication prescribers with stock grants, according to the company’s CFO. A former practice owner told us the grants were tied to number of sessions a clinician conducts, an incentive that can encourage quantity over quality of care. > • In December 2023, we signed up for an appointment with a LifeStance psychiatrist to better understand the company’s patient onboarding process. We were given a questionnaire developed by Pfizer and were asked if we were open to medication 13 minutes into our first session. > • Despite reporting to the psychiatrist that we had been in a good mood since Christmas, 32 minutes into our first session we were offered Pfizer’s Zoloft for treating depression and anxiety. By the end of a 15-minute follow up session we were prescribed Zoloft.
fragmede 3y ago
Thing is, how else do you want health care to work under capitalism? Health care is operating in Wall Street's world, and is thus subject to Wall Street's rules. If we had a different system where it wasn't subject to Wall Street then sure, but it is, so that's what we have. Not to be defeatist, but for better or worse, this is the system we have. If they're getting medication to people that genuinely need it, more power to them. How they treated their employees is broken as fuck, so good riddance, but in the bigger picture, there are patients that need treatment and this is how they're able to get it.
- NickC25 3y ago
  Capitalism is not just what Wall Street wants. Plenty of firms in a wide variety of industries don't have a shareholder mandate to increase profits every quarter. They have to respond to the needs of Main Street, not Wall Street. They still operate under capitalism. How else is health care supposed to work? How about government subsidies? How about price controls? "Public healthcare is such a complex beast that only 32 of the 33 most advanced economies in the world have made it work"
  - fragmede 3y ago
    I mean, I'd love those things in greater quantities than we have now, so I agree with you, but until that happens, we gotta do the best we can in the system we got.
hotsauceror 3y ago
Why wouldn't they be able to IPO? Making money off of pushing addictive chemicals to vulnerable people is a very attractive proposition. We know this because people will do it despite its being illegal. If you can make money, legally, doing something that hurts people, people will do it. Ask the Sacklers. Ask health insurers that deny coverage. It would be fashionable to say "the cruelty is the point" but it's not - the cruelty is just icing. Whether it is 'cruel' or 'moral' never even enters into the picture. People invest in companies that make torture devices, sell addictive chemicals, develop nerve toxins, and slaughter animals wholesale, without a second thought, because there is money to be made.

15457345234 3y ago

Let me guess, this is one of those online-only adderall-pushers that grew enormously during the pandemic, right?

gs17 3y ago
They pushed more than just Adderall, of course: > • LifeStance deals in controlled substances and medications like Xanax and Adderall that have huge potential for abuse, with prescription volume growth rivaling opiate prescriptions at their peak, according to health professionals. > • Despite the potentially addictive nature of some of these medications, former LifeStance employees claim that medication prescribers have been advised to cut consultation times to maximize revenue, with some former clinicians having seen “30 patients a day”. Others described it as akin to “war medicine.” > • LifeStance also rewarded its “highest-performing” medication prescribers with stock grants, according to the company’s CFO. A former practice owner told us the grants were tied to number of sessions a clinician conducts, an incentive that can encourage quantity over quality of care. > • In December 2023, we signed up for an appointment with a LifeStance psychiatrist to better understand the company’s patient onboarding process. We were given a questionnaire developed by Pfizer and were asked if we were open to medication 13 minutes into our first session. > • Despite reporting to the psychiatrist that we had been in a good mood since Christmas, 32 minutes into our first session we were offered Pfizer’s Zoloft for treating depression and anxiety. By the end of a 15-minute follow up session we were prescribed Zoloft.

fragmede 3y ago

Thing is, how else do you want health care to work under capitalism? Health care is operating in Wall Street's world, and is thus subject to Wall Street's rules. If we had a different system where it wasn't subject to Wall Street then sure, but it is, so that's what we have. Not to be defeatist, but for better or worse, this is the system we have. If they're getting medication to people that genuinely need it, more power to them. How they treated their employees is broken as fuck, so good riddance, but in the bigger picture, there are patients that need treatment and this is how they're able to get it.

NickC25 3y ago
Capitalism is not just what Wall Street wants. Plenty of firms in a wide variety of industries don't have a shareholder mandate to increase profits every quarter. They have to respond to the needs of Main Street, not Wall Street. They still operate under capitalism. How else is health care supposed to work? How about government subsidies? How about price controls? "Public healthcare is such a complex beast that only 32 of the 33 most advanced economies in the world have made it work"
- fragmede 3y ago
  I mean, I'd love those things in greater quantities than we have now, so I agree with you, but until that happens, we gotta do the best we can in the system we got.

hotsauceror 3y ago

Why wouldn't they be able to IPO? Making money off of pushing addictive chemicals to vulnerable people is a very attractive proposition. We know this because people will do it despite its being illegal. If you can make money, legally, doing something that hurts people, people will do it. Ask the Sacklers. Ask health insurers that deny coverage. It would be fashionable to say "the cruelty is the point" but it's not - the cruelty is just icing. Whether it is 'cruel' or 'moral' never even enters into the picture. People invest in companies that make torture devices, sell addictive chemicals, develop nerve toxins, and slaughter animals wholesale, without a second thought, because there is money to be made.