“So the FDA is in the tank for the pharma companies? Of course the counter-argument is that for decades the FDA has caused needless death through an over cautious bureaucratic approach to drug approval.”
Agreed, but my question was to compare the FDA of 20 years ago to the FDA today? Are they more responsive to market needs of Pharmaceutical companies?
The number of OTC drugs has certainly been convenient. Has it helped the pharma companies as well?
Please don’t get the impression I am partial to either the FDA or the related multinational corporations. The original question dealt with corporatism, and I was addressing that aspect.
BTW, thanks for answering my posts to americanmade1776, who doesn’t seem to respond in any rational way.
Are they more responsive to market needs of Pharmaceutical companies
Perhaps, but at the same time they have become more responsive to the health care market needs of the consumer. We lead the world in advances in therapeutic medications. And yes pharma ceos - and top-level chemists , physicians and biologists are becoming wealthy.
The number of OTC drugs has certainly been convenient. Has it helped the pharma companies as well?
Not just convenient - it has reduced the costs to the consumer. —While at the same time perhaps increasing profits to the pharma companies. I believe in market capitalism and this is an example of the government getting out of the way (as you would advocate) for a win-win.