Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

Abstract #120123

Danya M. Qato, PharmD, MPH, Harvard University School of Public Health, 9031 W. 169th Pl, Orland Hills, IL 60477, 708.261.1084, danyaqato@hotmail.com and J. Warren Salmon, PhD, Department of Pharmacy Administration, University of Illinois at Chicago, 833 South Wood Street (MC871), Chicago, IL 60612.

With the recent withdrawal of Vioxx from the market, the Chiron flu vaccine fiasco, the Canadian drug re-importation controversy, misfortunes from lack of FDA leadership and agency political functioning over science, amidst the continuing dramatic climbs in pharmaceutical expenditures, a reasonable reform agenda on health care in the United States and internationally should include extensive discussion on the true nature of the pharmaceutical industry and its proper role in health promotion. Beyond the vast wealth of the industry lies phenomenal political power, which it has historically wielded effectively- in the United States in particular- to resist price controls, to promote strict patent protection, and to increase opportunities for their growth. This paper will explore current political economic trends of the industry and will include an overview of the drug regulatory process, the state of the drug pipeline, the M&A fever, the transition from the mass market industrial paradigm towards a niche market paradigm, and, from pharmacists' perspective, the impact of direct-to-consumer advertising and recent controversies on consumer confidence in pharmaceuticals in particular, and the state of the US healthcare system in general. This paper is based on more than two years of research in which an exhaustive literature search and review was conducted, along with first hand experiences of a community pharmacist and public health practitioner. To this end, this paper will begin to lay a foundation for public health professionals to advocate for progressive policy change in this increasingly complex and oftimes conflicted industry.

Learning Objectives:

• See abstract

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

I wish to disclose that I have NO financial interests or other relationship with the manufactures of commercial products, suppliers of commercial services or commercial supporters.