Obama Orders FDA to Reduce Drug Shortages (Executive Order)

FoxNews.com ^ | October 31, 2011 | unattributed

[yup2394871293]

Obama needs to go to a beach somewhere that’s threated by an oncoming Cat 5 hurricane and order the ocean to retreat.

[Ellendra]

Sadly, this was predictable. Look for the quality to drop and requirements for getting a prescription to go up.

[WayneS]

Since when does the FDA manufacture drugs?

[slowhandluke]

Water is a monopoly provider, and local electric distribution is a monopoly, though generation is not in many places. These folks are in a position to price gouge.

Generic drug makers are not. The price gouging is being done by the government, in that they mandate what Medicare/Medicaid will pay (precious little) and what new tests must be done to re-certify the drug. When the profits get near zero, the supply dries up. It's simply business reality; no profit, no drugs.

You are blaming the wrong party.

And for drugs on patent, when somebody has something that will save your life, don't you want to reward them? They didn't have to invent that drug. And unlike the government, they have an incentive to invent things at a reasonable cost.

This is not something you want the government to own, or government unions to run.

[rlmorel]

Thank you for a reasonable response...by the way, the following is not a lecture, just an embodiment of how I feel, but I apologize if it sounds like a lecture...

I am not someone who believes there should be no government involvement in anything. (I think that is a fallacy foisted by the left to describe conservatives) So I believe government has a place. But I also believe that allowing the government to dictate to private companies what they should produce, how much they should produce, and at what price is a formula for disaster, both from a consumer standpoint and an economic standpoint.

An inherent aspect of fascist economies is an economy where the government exerts strong directive influence, and effectively controls production and allocation of resources. In general, apart from the nationalizations of some industries, fascist economies are based on private property and private initiative, but are contingent upon service to the state (such as meeting quotas, not 'gouging', etc)

I don't believe this is just an intellectual exercise, either. I think once you go down the road of allowing someone in government to make decisions about what industries are important such as, Chevrolet, Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac (though those are technically government created and run already, but I don't even want to go down that side road) AIG, Lehman Brothers and so on, you have crossed a rubicon, and the camel's nose is in the tent.

It is like being a little bit pregnant. We know where all this goes, it isn't obscure, ancient history. Going down this road leads to ruin, social, economic and human ruin. Every time it has been tried, it fails. There is always the conceit that "we can do it right", but that is a fallacy, because it cannot be done right.

Capitalism is the greatest engine for economic and social good the world has ever seen, and has done more to lift more people out of poverty than anything else. It works, because it operates on self-interest, which is nearly the strongest of all human behaviors. Altruism is contrary to human nature at large, and is almost always overpowered by self-interest. Capitalism harnesses that fact in a positive way.

We make the choice of paying taxes to our towns and governments to set up water filtration and delivery systems. That is a choice, not a mandate, and it isn't a right. Before we had private companies piping gas and oil into our houses for heating, we had to provide those things for ourselves, which was a great deal of time-consuming, back-breaking work. Electricity and water are not rights, they are things we choose to have because they make our lives better. There is no requirement to have gas heating, water services and electricity. If I wanted to, I could choose to opt out of those things, walk a mile to the river with buckets and bring water back to boil over a wood fire to make it potable, but I don't choose to.

There are a lot of dirty, nasty, unpleasant, time consuming jobs out there that I am thrilled I don't have to do myself (such as fetch water) and am more than happy to pay money to a corporation or entity to do that work for me. They charge me more than it costs them to do it, and use that money, the profits to support their families.

In my opinion, government has a place, but mandating how much of what drug is produced at what cost is not something I want to see. Today it is the pharmaceutical industry. Tomorrow it is coats and boots. I don't think there is a middle ground, because once you go that way, you will go all the way.

Just my opinion. As you can see from my Freep page, Thomas Sowell is one of the people in society at large that I have a great deal of respect for. Sure, I have read his books and drunk his kool-aid as a result, but history also tells me he has it right.

[RasterMaster]

I guess those who vote with their wallets didn’t get the daily talking points memo or buy the DNC media spin....

Cain Has His Biggest Fundraising Day
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2800913/posts

[Red Boots]

The White House also announced Obama's support for House and Senate legislation that would require drug makers to notify the FDA six months ahead of a potential shortage

How are they supposed to know in advance ? This won't help alleviate shortages, but I bet there are big fines that go directly to the FDA if shortages are not prophesied accurately. As usual, it's just another government fee/fine generator.

[SunkenCiv]

Thanks Hunton Peck.

...drug shortages that administration officials say have placed patients at risk and led to price gouging.

Occupy Walgreens.