• Legalized Murder
• FDA says Opioid Drugs are Non-Addictive
Corruption
Featured Editorials
FDA's Role in the Problem:
The FDA’s regulatory structure has become a tool for protecting pharmaceutical industry profits rather than public health. Large drug companies influence FDA decisions through lobbying, campaign contributions, and regulatory capture. This leads to decisions that prioritize corporate interests over consumer safety and affordability. For example, pharmaceutical companies have successfully lobbied the FDA to classify natural substances as prescription drugs, creating monopolies. An egregious example of FDA corruption was the fraudulent approval of OxyContin® whereby FDA officials went on to lucrative employment with the pharma company while nearly 800,000 Americans subsequently perishing from opioid overdoses.
To reduce corruption, policymakers should push for greater transparency in FDA decision-making. This includes enforcing conflict-of-interest laws that prevent FDA officials from taking lucrative pharmaceutical industry jobs after leaving the agency.
Proposed Policy Solutions:
References
1: https://www.fdamuseum.com/blog/legal-murder
2: www.fdamuseum.com/blog/fda-fueled-opioid-epidemic
3: Faloon, W. (2017). Pharmocracy II: How Corrupt Deals and Misguided Medical Regulations Are Bankrupting America—and What to Do About It (p. 27). Hunter Lewis Foundation.
