Benjamin Lomeli-Flores

Mrs.Ramirez

English 4

March 8 2021

Big Pharma Conspiracy

The pharmaceutical industry produces drugs for medicinal use, that’s would

google would tell you, however there are many scandals that surround the largest

companies of the pharmaceutical industry, commonly referred to as Big Pharma leading

many people to believe that the pharmaceutical industry is corrupt and behaves in a

way that not only harms americans but works against its interests in order to profit an

absurd amount. Big pharma has spent money in suspicious ways that benefit it’s higher

ups, Big pharma has participated in monopolistic practices. And Big Pharma constantly

raises the prices of its products.

The pharmaceutical industry has continued to raise its prices consistently for

many years. In 2020 drug makers raised the prices of more than 860 drugs by an

average of five percent. There has been less and less competition in the pharmaceutical

industry because large companies buy out small competitors. This is bad for the

American economy because as drugs become non negotiable, their prices will only

continue to increase. If prices continue to increase, especially the price of life saving

drugs like insulin, then people will die because of their inability to afford those drugs.

There is a monopoly within the Pharmaceutical Industry where small drug

manufacturers are barred from distributing generic versions of expensive drugs because
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they aren’t FDA approved. Big pharma has been said to contribute up to two-thirds of

the FDAs budget. The FDA regulates medicines that are available to the american

public. With competition being barred from distribution Big pharma is free to price it’s

drugs however it wants. In only eighteen years a single vial of insulin has increased in

price by 1200% and Inflation only accounts for less than 60% of that figure. Big pharma

is willing to raise prices to unreasonable levels as long as Americans continue to pay.

The Pharmaceutical Industry is a major contributor to the opioid epidemic in

America. On November 24th 2020, Purdue Pharma was caught paying providers to

encourage them to prescribe more of their products. In violation of the food drug, and

cosmetic act, Purdue dispensed opioid products including Oxycontin without a

legitimate medical purpose. This had the effect of introducing people unnecessarily to

opiods, when that happens you can become reliant and addicted to opioids. Purdue

paid practitioners in order for them to recommend and arrange the ordering of purdues’

opioid products. These actions were taken by one company for money and it's hard to

imagine there aren't others doing similar things.

Big pharma is riddled with financialization and profits are funneled to the pockets

of shareholders. Because pharmaceutical companies receive substantial U.S.

government assistance in the form of publicly funded basic research and tax breaks,

they can afford to pay 1378 lobbyists to spread their influence in capitol hill and can

pass laws that benefit them, they have lobbied vigorously against proposed market

regulations designed to control drug prices in the United States which wouldn’t benefit

them. This year, big pharma is predicted to profit 610 billion from prescription drugs.
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In conclusion, the pharmaceutical industry continues to harm Americans in

exchange for wealth. The shareholders of the pharmaceutical industry should be closely

investigated; those who are found to break the law should have the law brought upon

them. American people can no longer afford the high cost of life-saving prescriptions.

Monopolies can only be bad for a general population and free-markets can only offer

cheaper prices. Everyday, people continue to struggle with the opioid crisis and lose

their family and life. The financialization in the pharmaceutical industry is something that

should be prevented. “Big Pharma needs sick people to prosper. Patients, not healthy

people, are their customers.” - James Morcan.

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Works Cited

Meller, Abbey, and Hauwa Ahmed. “How Big Pharma Reaps Profits While Hurting

Everyday Americans.” Center for American Press, 30 Aug. 2019, 9:03 am,

www.americanprogress.org/issues/democracy/reports/2019/08/30/473911/big-ph

arma-reaps-profits-hurting-everyday-americans/.

Compton, Kristen. “Big Pharma and Medical Device Manufacturers.” Drugwatch, 29

Jan. 2021, www.drugwatch.com/manufacturers/.

Lazonick, William, et al. “ Financialization of the U.S. Pharmaceutical Industry.” Institute

for New Economic Teaching, 2 Dec. 2019,

www.ineteconomics.org/perspectives/blog/financialization-us-pharma-industry.

Humer. “U.S. health agency estimates 2015 prescription drug spending rose to $457

billion.” Reuters, 8 mar. 2016,

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-healthcare-pricing-idUSKCN0WA2O0.

Morgenson, Gretchen. “Big Pharma Spends on Share Buybacks, but R&D? Not So

Much.” The New York Times, 14 July 2017,

www.nytimes.com/2017/07/14/business/big-pharma-spends-on-share-buybacks-

but-rd-not-so-much.html.