MERCK AGAIN - ARGHHHHHHHHHHH

[Guest guest]

Merck Gets Away with Murder - Again

November 9th, 2007

 

The following story came out a couple of hours ago about Merck agreeing to pay 4.85 billion to settle the 50,000 or so lawsuits against them.

 

http://news./s/ap/20071109/ap_on_bi_ge/vioxx_settlement

 

At face value, this would appear to be a major blow to Big Pharma. But here’s the thing that chaps my ass - Merck is going to charge it off on pre-tax earnings which means the taxpayers will bear most of the load. Here’s an excerpt:

 

"Merck said it will take a pretax charge for the full $4.85 billion in the current quarter. It would not say whether insurance will cover any of that, but said much of the charge will be tax deductible."

 

So they literally get away with murder! Where are the criminal charges? What about the air-head drug reps and doctors who touted it as the safest pain-killer of all time?

 

This $4.85 billion settlement is a slap on the wrist to a band of murderers. There were more than 27,000 heart attacks and sudden cardiac deaths caused by Vioxx. This paltry settlement won’t cause Merck to break it’s stride. They will continue to push dangerous products: Can you say HPV vaccine? Yea, the one given to innocent teen girls! Too bad those folks who suffered from pain didn’t know about the SAFE and EFFECTIVE pain killer I designed 4 years ago: JointFX. Its been used for prevention and reversal of severe joint pain. I even used it when I broke my ankle and collar bone riding my mountain bike at break-neck speeds downhill….That’s stupid. But not as stupid as a pretty drug rep selling Vioxx.

 

 

 

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[Guest guest]

I agree whole heartedly with your comments! These big pharma companies, as you said are nothing but a pack of murders, and it does not seem that any one can stop them. They have bought off congress, most of our Doctors, and the FDA. If people would just listen to, or read the hazards of taking almost any of these drugs, they would run as fast as they could to natural alternatives. It has been proven time and time again, that the natural alternatives work as well and in many times better, without the killing side effects. Big pharma has so much control,they are like the mafia, all the wonderful natural remedies are brushed under the rug, so they can continue to make their billions of dollars every year at the cost of ill informed consumers. The pharma companies do not give a dam about the publics health, only their bottom line. I personally changed over to natural alternatives some time ago, and my health has improved dramatically. You can go to www.smartlivingsense.com for your own wonderful drug free, harmful chemical free, green living, and just amazing wonderful health. I would highly recommend it, we can show big pharma who is really boss, of our own health and lives by using safer products. Stop paying their bottom line, with your health!

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[Guest guest]

Several years ago I attended a lobster fest. The lobsters were flown

to North Carolina from Maine along with staff to serve them. My

husband ate 6 lobsters along with a fancy spread of other food.

Needless to say, no expense was spared. The bill for this bash went

to the billion dollar pharmaceutical company known as Merck. The

occasion was to promote the sale of their drug, Vioxx, to medical

professionals like me. Being young and naïve at the time, I had no

idea that I was being " bought " .

 

Apparently the lavish parties paid off: Vioxx brought in $2.5 billion

dollars annually until it was pulled from the shelves for causing

some 50-60,000 unnecessary heart attacks, strokes, or deaths. Merck

just announced they are willing to pay $4.85 billion to settle these

cases, an amount that is reportedly tax-deductible. (Meaning that we

tax payers are indirectly contributing a hefty chunk) Merck still

maintains no fault.

 

And yet I recall treating numerous heart patients in the first weeks

of Vioxx's entrance to the marketplace. Many of these patients had

just started this drug prior to my seeing them in the hospital for

heart attacks and heart failure exacerbations. I remember warning my

patients to avoid this drug long before it was pulled from the

market. I am certainly no more astute than my colleagues, so I

presume Merck was aware of the problem as well.

 

The problem with the way the Vioxx debacle is being handled is that

it is allowing a company that caused severe devastation to numerous

families to walk away with a slap on the wrist. This allows them to

continue to profit from the mass poisoning of people until their next

product is pulled and a similar wrist-slapping occurs.

 

As Americans, when will we say enough is enough? Will we ever hold

profiteering corporate heads and their political cronies accountable

or will we simply turn our heads as their next product is marketed

for our children and actually mandated by government? For those of

you who are beginning to open your eyes, yes, it is Merck who is

forcing the cervical cancer vaccination down the throats of young

girls. And no, it hasn't been on the market long enough to insure its

safety. (In fact, it has already claimed the lives of several young

girls.)

 

With the 2008 election year upon us and healthcare reform a hot

issue, let's not overlook the fact that access to healthcare is the

least of the healthcare crises in America. We need to revamp the

system to insure that pharmaceutical-based care is phased out while

whole foods, nutrient-based, natural medicine is phased in. For

patients with chronic medical problems (1 in 2 Americans), functional

medicine (www.functionalmedicine.org) is the most successful

approach. It prevents diseases and treats illnesses at the root of

the problem rather than by treating each symptom as it arises. Yet

this type of medical care is often not reimbursed by our antiquated

third party payer system. It is time for dramatic change. Will 2008

be the year?

 

Check out www.holler4health.com to STOP TREATING! START PREVENTING!