Reply #30: Listen to this Thom Hartmann segment on scalping drugs ...

[slipslidingaway]

the Obama 80 billion dollar deal with Billy Tauzin only covers brand name drugs. Then what happens to generic drugs (like Cytarabine) are we going to make the problem worse with profits on brand name drugs being higher?

Start at the two minute mark

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=385&topic_id=639371&mesg_id=639371


"So, have you ever scalped a pair of tickets for a baseball game? Better yet - have you ever scalped some cancer drugs to save your life? That's right - scalping drugs is the latest "get rich quick scheme" in our distorted health care system that's costing tens of thousands of people their lives each year - but making big money for doctors, health insurance providers, and pharmaceutical companies. Right now there are more than a half million cancer patients in the United States who can't get the medication they need to save their lives. And the reason is - companies are buying up all the drugs at wholesale - and then trying to sell them back to hospitals and patients at anywhere between 650 to 4,000 percent above costs. They're the scalpers - and they operate in a "grey market" - without safety regulations - calling up hospitals all around the nation to pass off their drugs at new super-high prices. Here's the kicker - it's perfectly legal..."

Executive order by Obama could make matters worse ...

"If it just requires manufacturers to report a drug shortage, then people who are making money off this will find an obvious entry," he said."

Might as well just flash a Buy signal for companies like Allied Medical.