If Free Trade Is Such A Good Thing?

[SirMoby]

Then why do we keep blocking it for medicine?

We need medicine more then we need video games, cheap clothing and toys filled with lead paint for our children.

We don't regulate Chinese made goods that end up in the hands of our children. So why do need to regulate Canadian made medicines when they seem to be doing a fine job of that themselves?

[kres24GT]

Because we in no way believe in free trade at all, hence where we are now. THis is your big government world Moby. This is what you wanted. Big government makes sure only the drug companies make their money, that is how Big Government operates. Wealthy benefit, the rest do not.

[Dale escondido]

Maybe the pharmaceutical lobbyist are more powerful than the toy industries lobbyist.
Sheakspeare said to fix the world you must first kill all the lawyers.
He probably never met a lobbyist.

[Mr. Blue]

This topic tends to be oversimplified. The oversimplified version of it generally is a popular political plea to the masses, but I don't think it entirely does justice to the complexities of the issue.

I thought this was a decent article on the topic:

http://www.hoover.org/publications/digest/3020791.html

So, while it seems like a commonsense type solution to say let us import drugs from Canada...there's complexities that don't get discussed.

[Dale escondido]

This topic tends to be oversimplified. The oversimplified version of it generally is a popular political plea to the masses, but I don't think it entirely does justice to the complexities of the issue.

I thought this was a decent article on the topic:

http://www.hoover.org/publications/digest/3020791.html

So, while it seems like a commonsense type solution to say let us import drugs from Canada...there's complexities that don't get discussed.

Understood, but I believe the complexity of issues are generally created for a purpose.

[SirMoby]

I remember when I ended up in Warsaw Poland and had to stay an extra 2 months. I was taking prescription antihistamines at the time that cost around $180 US (only $10 with my socialist company paid insurance) and required going to a doctor. I purchased the same thing there for $20 Zloty (about 5 bucks) at the drug store. It had been available there for years.

Why not allow people to shop over seas for the best bargins?

[Mr. Blue]

I remember when I ended up in Warsaw Poland and had to stay an extra 2 months. I was taking prescription antihistamines at the time that cost around $180 US (only $10 with my socialist company paid insurance) and required going to a doctor. I purchased the same thing there for $20 Zloty (about 5 bucks) at the drug store. It had been available there for years.

Why not allow people to shop over seas for the best bargins?

Will drug companies continue to research and invest in new drugs if there's no profitability involved?

I believe Ron Paul has part of the solution to the problem and it lies with the FDA. Here's a quote from Ron Paul that helps to illustrate the problem of drug costs in America:

The Food and Drug Administration is also directly responsible for high drug costs. Pharmaceutical companies spend hundreds of millions of dollars to bring a single drug to market because of FDA rules. Often FDA approval is never obtained, no matter how much a company spends developing a drug. So pharmaceutical makers naturally try to recoup their huge investments by charging high prices and lobbying to keep exclusive drug patent periods as lengthy as possible. We need to understand that the FDA does far more harm than good, both in terms of drug prices and the incalculable chilling effect it has on needed drug research. With less FDA interference, patents could be shortened and drug development costs reduced. This would allow greater price competition between drug companies.

Now, with changing the way the FDA regulates drugs, we'd also probably have an increase in lawsuits when drugs fail or cause some other illnesses.

However, it comes down to the companies ability to profit from their research. Remove the profit incentive and I would wager a guess that new drugs would be much slower in coming forward.

If these drug companies are suddenly faced with free trade, drugs from Canada, Europe, etc, they'll most likely change the way they do business because the profit margins wouldn't be there.

[Cat slave]

Everything is about making money. There will be little R&D if it is not profitable
for those investing $$ and time.

And why must we import anything? I dont want anything made in China
which I understand supplies many of the ingredients that go into generic
medications. Oh for joy, what next!

Where does Canada get its ingredients for its pharmacological products???

My daughter went to WalMart yesterday to try to get her prescription filled
for migrane headache prevention. It was generic and a months supply
would cost $94! Time to tap into homeopathy and herbs and tell the generic/
faux drug people to shove it whatever country they come from.

And whats with the latest salmonella outbreak? Is there really an FDA or
are they just completely incompetent and cant do anything right?

And we need "fair" trade, not "free" trade.

[SeedyROM]

We live within a corporate style black market of sorts that blocks foreign competition of drugs. The FDA is actually out of control with so many drugs with black box warnings........drugs that can kill or cause serious illness. Some drugs are being rubber stamped before the know the full dangers. The corporate shills run the FDA. Bush has really opened pandora's box with loss FDA oversight.

[Mr, gone]

And I'm an unfortunate recipient of the FDA's corrupt policies. The benzodiazapine Xanax should NEVER have been classified as a schedule IV drug. This medication can cause seizures and death - even at prescibed doses. Detoxing off this stuff can take up to a year!

And the the doctors play like they never heard of patients having these side effects when discontinuing use.

Unless a drug kills thousands of people, the pharmceutical companies will never be held resonsiple.

[disrupter]

Protectionism for Drug companies is ok at the expense of Americans at least according to the lying, hypocritical US congress.

I bet free trade in Gaza would be a godsend, instead Israel blockades food, medicine, & fuel to run the power plant, which means they don't have clean water & sewage ends up flowing in the streets & into houses.

But neocon rhetoric about democracy & free trade are complete bullshit.
They only create corrupt, rigged markets, bloated with government contracts, all done at hard working American's expense. They hate the democratically elected HAMAS & cold bloodedly stole the 2004 presidential election. They flipped a 4% win by Kerry gathered by hundreds of independent exit poll takers & a few GOP insiders rerouted the computerized outcome to a private computer for manipulation before sending the altered results to the Secretary of State of Ohio, giving GWB the election by 2.5 percent, meaning they flipped the vote by 6.5 percent.

Our system would work much better if corrupt DC didn't manipulate it & allowed the legal process to protect shareholders & other victims of corporate crime & fraud.

[Cat slave]

The FDAs approval of anything means squat to me. Too many times stuff has
been released/had FDA approval and after use in the field it would be learned
that it was toxic, caused other or worse illnesses, birth defects or even death.
Wonder what the acronym for FDA means...clearly not what we been told.

[disrupter]

Food & Drug Administration?
or
Fraud, Deception & Addiction?

[ROdger Right]

free trade???? Wouldnt we need a free market for that??
when you think of America, do you think we have anything it use to represent today??

[Cat slave]

I vote NO!

[SeedyROM]

Food & Drug Administration?
or
Fraud, Deception & Addiction?

or Fools and Dumbasses Association:lmao2: