LEAD-IN- Recent data confirms that health care professionals are using the Internet more and spending less time with drug company reps. How much should you spend on an HCP portal, and how do you measure its success?
Category Archive: As I See It
LEAD IN: Pharma companies are a business and have the right to make money but at what cost and how much is enough? The world’s makers of Covid-19 vaccines—saw over $10 billion in new wealth, with the Moderna’s CEO alone adding over $800 million to his fortune. Is this acceptable?
LEAD-IN: Yesterday I had a long talk with someone who has been in the industry for over 25 years. She has decided to leave the pharma industry because she said, “patients have been reduced to numbers on an excel spreadsheet” and “I am tired of trying to get coworkers to see them as people with real needs.”
GOOD MORNING: The FDA is taking a scientific approach to evaluating direct-to-consumer (DTC) drug advertising, focusing on measuring consumer perceptions of the information presented in ads. Since when is consumer behavior ever scientific?
OPENING: TV is great at creating awareness, but it can also scare patients away if one of your side effects is “may lead to death.” This is one side effect that stands out when your target audience watches your spot along with “serious heart rhythm problems” and “new cancers have happened during treatment.”
OPENING: In an era of media sensationalism, I have come to appreciate good journalism. When it comes to healthcare, my number one choice is STAT News, but I have also found the Financial Times and The Economist to be excellent sources. Below is a summary of an in-depth article from the Finacial Times on Pfizer and their COVID vaccine. It’s beyond damning; it’s a reflection of an industry that values profits above all else.
OPENING: As the NY Times recently reported, obesity is the leading cause of mortality in the United States. Obesity costs the nation $1.72 trillion every year. Although not everyone with type 2 diabetes is overweight, obesity and an inactive lifestyle are two of the most common causes of type 2 diabetes. These things are responsible for about 90% to 95% of diabetes cases in the United States
SUMMARY: AbbVie continues to profit from Americans by repeatedly raising U.S. prices on its widely-used Humira rheumatoid arthritis drug while cutting the price abroad. AbbVie exploits the U.S. patent system to fend off competitors and increased the price of Humira to $77,000 for a year’s supply, while the price of its cancer drug Imbruvica was raised to $181,529 per year.