Ethical Issues in the Pharmaceutical Industry
Abstract No one can deny that the pharmaceutical industry has made significant contributions to human progress. The pharmaceutical industry has been responsible for drugs that have saved millions of lives, cured many forms of cancer, and ensured that an AIDS diagnosis is no longer an automatic death sentence. Yet despite this there are questions that the public has on whether the industry has been fulfilling their social responsibility. There are many ethical questions that need to be addressed on how the pharmaceutical industry can be a better corporate citizen, and how the public can also ensure that when they go to the doctors, that decisions on their health are not in some way being influenced by the pharmaceutical industry who’s main objective may not be the health or well being of the patient.
This essay attempts to delve into these questions and concerns in regard to patience rights and the proper relationships between the pharmaceutical industry and the public. It will explore how much influence the industry has on doctor’s decision making and what ethical lines are being crossed in the relationship between health care and pharmaceutical industry. It will also explore the roll the FDA plays in protecting Americans against potential drug issues and whether or not it is being impeded by a revolving door where key pharmaceutical executives are actually working for and with the FDA to effect policy on their very organization. Finally it will question how the industry should balance their rights of their own intellectual property and patents with the needs of the communities that rely on their product for their well being.
The pharmaceutical industry, like most, depends on the simple business principals of supply and demand. The drug companies make and sell their products; however they cannot sell directly to the consumer and must rely on the
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