One of the little questions that has been in the back of my mind about the campaign to require girls to get the new Merck HPV vaccine is who the heck is this Women in Government group that is so gung-ho about this wonder med? Why have I never heard of them before and why are they getting a free pass from the press who make it sound like a well-established, well-respected organization and where have you been if you haven’t heard of it. Sure they mention that Merck provides funding to the group, but as they say, that’s all they wrote.
So in an act of personal remedial education, I went to take a look-see at their website. It’s quite informative. They have a complete list of sponsors, that includes quite the roster of drug companies, insurance companies, medical associations and the odd energy company and auto maker just to add a little balance. Ok, ok, here are some of the highlights for your own personal enlightenment:
Amgen
Amylin Pharamaceuticals, Inc.
Anheuser-Busch Companies, Inc.Arkansas Electric Cooperatives, Inc.
Astellas Pharma US, Inc.Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Vermont
Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Bristol-Myers Squibb Foundation
Cosmetic, Toiletry, and Fragrance Association
Cosmetic, Toiletry, and Fragrance Foundation
Entergy Arkansas
ExxonMobil
GlaxoSmithKline
Highland Campus Health Group
Hoffmann-LaRoche, Inc.
Oh well you say optimistically, isn’t it wonderful that all these companies are SOOO supportive of women in government that they provide them with much needed financial support. Strings attached? Looks like–if you browse through their newsletters from the last few years, you will find article after article telling you all about new drugs that are vital to curing whatever the epidemic du jour is. So lets disabuse ourselves that this conveniently named group would automatically have the best interests of women at heart, their funding says otherwise and leaves a pretty odorous clue as to the real deciding factors in healthcare policy in this country.
2 Responses to “Follow the funding: Is “Women in Government” pro-woman or pro-big pharma? (edited)”
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The Philadelphia TV news stations ran a spot a couple of nights ago about adverse reactions to the innoculation that included fainting, dizziness, and digestive problems. The pharma response to this was “that happens for ANY vaccine.”
Lemme remember this one straight .. even a typhoid shot left only a little sore spot.
What are they giving these girls? This sounds more like a Nazi medical experiment than protection from a cancer that strikes a relatively small proportion of women.
Keep up this great resource. best greetings!