Tubthumper
04-Feb-07, 01:50
Here's a thing.
You know how we contribute to Cancer Research, and all the other charities that try to find cures for the ailments that beset mankind?
And you know how when a drug company finds a pill that helps treat a problem, for instance Herceptin prescribed for breast cancer.
And you know how the NHS is having a hard time paying for these drugs - like, you can have a hundred kidney transplants or two Herceptin treatments.
What I want to know is this: Who does the research that leads to the drugs, and who gets copyright/patents to earn billions from them?
It strikes me that if it's the drugs companies, what are the charitable organsations struggling to find money for, and if it's the charities, then why are they not getting the patent money from the outrageously expensive prices the drugs are being sold for?
This is not a dig at either the charities or drug companies by the way.
You know how we contribute to Cancer Research, and all the other charities that try to find cures for the ailments that beset mankind?
And you know how when a drug company finds a pill that helps treat a problem, for instance Herceptin prescribed for breast cancer.
And you know how the NHS is having a hard time paying for these drugs - like, you can have a hundred kidney transplants or two Herceptin treatments.
What I want to know is this: Who does the research that leads to the drugs, and who gets copyright/patents to earn billions from them?
It strikes me that if it's the drugs companies, what are the charitable organsations struggling to find money for, and if it's the charities, then why are they not getting the patent money from the outrageously expensive prices the drugs are being sold for?
This is not a dig at either the charities or drug companies by the way.