Congress, International, Politics, Society

Obama Administration Pushes New Trade Agreement That Would Further Enrich Pharmaceutical Companies And Discourage Lower Priced Generic Drugs

President_Barack_Obama220px-FlattenedRoundPillsThe Obama Administration has been widely criticized for being captured by the pharmaceutical industry, which has gotten the White House to block efforts to guarantee lower cost drugs and increase profits for these companies. Pharmaceutical lobbyists have in turn given huge amounts of campaign money to President Obama and Democratic members as well as jobs to former members. Even with this record, however, many are shocked by the White House pushing of a trade agreement that would undermine international efforts to reduce the cost of drugs and extend the patents for these companies to further increase their profits. The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) allows for techniques like “evergreening” to extend patents for the industry, which in turn has continued its own evergreen record of high-paying jobs for political allies and massive campaign contributions for the White House and Congress. Everyone wins . . . except the tens of millions who cannot afford medicine. While these companies have valid interests in recouping their investment and making profits on new drugs (which are expensive to develop), the secrecy and sweeping impact of the TPP deserves far greater attention in the media.

The Obama Administration is in Salt Lake City to push 11 other countries to agree to the changes on intellectual property rules. Of course, Obama’s self-described “most transparent” administration has kept the public out of the proceedings and much of the work has been in secret. Cloaked from the public eye, the Obama Administration has carried out the demands of the industry over the international need for lower priced drugs.

While the public is barred, companies like Walmart and Monsanto are allowed to participate. The former Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Anderson joined protests of the Administration’s “horrible betrayal of the American promise of liberty, of equality.” The Administration and its partners clearly picked Salt Lake City in winter as the least likely to generate protests, but still faced protesters in the street outside of the hotel.

In the meantime, the White House is touting the agreement to extend patent rights (and prices) for companies as “a model for future trade agreements.” It includes extending drug patent terms from 20 years to at least 25 years and would allow companies to patent new formulations of existing medicines. This is called “evergreening,” which involves small changes like a shift from a gel to a tablet to continue to control the sale and prices of a drug. It also has provisions to make it more difficult to market lower cost generic drugs until the long patent periods have run. It is a bonanza for drug companies and lobbyists. Public interest groups have denounced the effort but few people in Congress are willing to oppose the drug lobby.
Lobbying remains one of the most profitable areas for former members. Ironically, the pharmaceutical industry has been repeatedly denounced for the hiring of former members and staffers in what some view as a award for the passage of windfall legislation.

The hold of these companies on the White House and Congress is remarkable . . . as is the open revolving door of influence. For example, former Congressman Billy Tauzin, R-La., pushed the bill through the House over objections from members and public interest organizations. He then accepted a $2 million a year job as president of Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA), the main industry lobbying group. Medicare head Thomas Scully, who was accused of coercing employees to hide the true costs of the program, was given a job as a pharmaceutical lobbyist as were 14 congressional aides who worked on the passage of the bill. Twenty-five former members and high-ranking staffers returned to lobby for the industry with huge salaries — an example to others how to profiteer at the public expense.

With our current duopoly of power, there is little threat to this lobby which has deep hold of both parties. When confronted, the two parties simply return to the same blue state/red state rhetoric and portray the other side as worse. In fact, they are on the same side and the only people made worse are millions of Americans who are being bled financially to get access to needed drugs.

104 thoughts on “Obama Administration Pushes New Trade Agreement That Would Further Enrich Pharmaceutical Companies And Discourage Lower Priced Generic Drugs”

  1. Damn! There’s been a lot going on since I took that rather longish nap. That evil and spineless Obama has managed to force those nice, liberal military generals to allow gays in the military.

  2. Wow! I just was looking over my local paper and whadaya know. This spineless and evil administration has managed to pass a law that people have been calling for for 50 – 60 years. It’s called Obamacare.

  5. Anybody notice this evil and spineless administration managed a nuclear deal with a country wiith which we have had no relations for 30 years?

  6. Bruce, just be sure not to send cash to Scott Walker. Koch has already purchased Wisconsin.

  8. Trying to make the TPP an Obama issue or a Chicago issue or a Republican issue or even an American issue only reveals a **complete** misunderstanding or total lack of understanding of the TTP document.

    As noted by a few others already, Obama and all other top lawmakers are simply working for plutocrats. It’s fascism, folks, and it is independent of political party if you still haven’t sorted that out.

    One of the purposes of the TPP is to begin establishing language that will make nations beholden to the power of private-international business. The TPP framework is older than this administration.

    Partisan bickering is what is expected from our society and our society is playing its part perfectly. We shout about how ‘free’ we are while our knees are being bent ever so slowly and without our even noticing.

    History and our grandchildren won’t give a damn about which administration you supported because it won’t matter at all . They’ll be too busy trying to figure out why we were so stupid and why we allowed the worlds resources to be plundered for the benefit of so few.

  11. Living in California writing to a congress person is a waste of ink, Maxine Waters, Karen Bass, Nancy Pelosi, Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein are a waste of time

  12. LJC,

    In my first post I spoke clearly of the corruption within Congress and the Judiciary. There are many minions. Obama is an noted lackey, but certainly not the only one.

    My most important point is that citizens should not be lackeys of their own and each other’s oppression. It means recognizing the dangerousness of what is happening among elected officials, the media and the judiciary in our nation. It means stopping the cult of personality around Obama. It means stop worshiping political parties, worrying incessantly about the side show of R’s and D’s. It means, start looking honestly at what is happening.

    It means, work for justice.

  13. Unfortunately Obama is to be included among the ranks of the spineless and purchased politicians that are destroying the democratic dream of America. We are governed by an oligarchy of select groups that talk to us as if we are idiots. Who in their right mind would take advice regarding pharmaceuticals via glitzy TV ads. Only an idiot would make this formula work. The pharmaceutical industry in America is the only place in the world where the manufacturers of drugs can be assured of enough stupid people watching tv to make it viable for them to spend 20% of their budget on advertising. We are a stupid stupid people who are getting stupider by the election.

    Hundreds of millions of dollars in campaign contributions each year assure the pharmaceutical industry that it can charge what it likes, and if the individual can’t pay then the government, who is in their pocket, will pay instead.

    Obama is no different than any other bought and paid for politician. He is the lesser of the recent evils and still preferable to the three stooges that caused so much murder and mayhem through out the world. Too bad though, I was hoping for more, not much more, just more.

    Shame on you Obama.

  14. I should clarify, the congressmen’s letter was opposing the Fast Tracking, I am assuming they are not in favor of the TPP.

  18. Can we each send this blog article with the comments to our Senators and Congressman or woman? I am gonna do so.

  19. When you leave this country you learn how provincial many people here are by calling this “America.” Certainly our formal name the United States of America is a mouthful. But, America is incorrect since that is part of the name of 2 continents. The “US” or “The States” is less egotistical.

  20. So, it would appear that this administration has gone over to the dark side. Strange bedfellows when Michelle Bachman and Ed Schultz of MSNBC are on the same side of this. Good thing for those countries that are balking over the TPP and not signing on to it. What happened to America?

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