Big Pharma's Strategy Shift: Leveraging WHO for Market Control
Big Pharma's Strategy to Control the Drug Market
Pharmaceutical Industry's New Strategy
Max Jones, a journalist from Unlimited Hangout, has reported on how Big Pharma is leveraging the World Health Organization (WHO) to restructure the drug market. The goal is to reduce regulation on insufficiently tested vaccines and drugs, and to enable compulsory administration to entire populations during global pandemics.
Why the Shift in Strategy?
Big Pharma is facing a "patent cliff" by 2030, with many of their high-profit drugs set to lose patent protection. This could potentially put $180 billion in sales at risk and destabilize the industry. Previously, pharmaceutical companies would acquire smaller drug companies to supplement their product portfolios when patents expired. However, the industry is now dominated by a few large companies, and the regulatory process for new drugs has become burdensome.
Big Pharma's Pivot to Biotech
Big Pharma has now shifted its focus to acquiring biotech and biologic companies. The products of these companies are more complex, unpredictable, and costly to produce than conventional chemical drugs. Biologics, which are derived from living human, animal, or microorganism cells and technologically altered to target specific proteins or cells in the immune system, offer a solution to the patent cliff problem. They cannot be easily replicated like generic versions of conventional drugs. However, the high risk of serious adverse events associated with biologics makes it challenging for drug manufacturers to find commercial success in a traditional regulatory environment.
Loopholes and the COVID-19 Vaccines
According to Jones, the WHO and its private backers are pursuing a legal process that would establish loopholes to overcome these market challenges. These loopholes have made Pfizer and Moderna's COVID-19 mRNA vaccines Big Pharma's most successful annual market products. The distribution of these vaccines to approximately 70% of the global population was possible due to the fast-tracked, deregulated development and mandated use of these experimental drugs. The industry aims to replicate this model with other drugs.
The WHO as an Arm of Big Pharma
Jones argues that the WHO, backed by its private stakeholders, has become an extension of Big Pharma. These stakeholders, which include private-sector giants and public-sector bureaucrats, have been working to create a new system that would expedite vaccine production. The goal is to institutionalize the procedures that were put in place globally for COVID-19 to pave the way for a new pandemic market.
The Emerging Pandemic Market
The plan to secure this market is based on four pillars: biosurveillance of "pathogens with pandemic potential", rapid sharing of data and research, new regulatory pathways, and global mandates of unapproved products. The WHO is developing its Global Digital Health Certification Network, which will digitize vaccination records and health records and will be "interoperable" with existing networks.
Bottom Line
This report raises important questions about the influence of Big Pharma on global health organizations and the potential implications for public health. As we navigate the complexities of the global pandemic, it's crucial to consider the role of various stakeholders in shaping health policy and regulation. What are your thoughts on this issue? Share this article with your friends and sign up for the Daily Briefing, available every day at 6pm.