Edwards pushes stupity to new levels

Nov/14/2007 04:56 Filed in: Pharma Business
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From today's Wall Street Journal comes this tidbit: Presidential hopeful John Edwards is floating an idea that may get the drug industry’s attention: No more patent protection for breakthrough medicines. Instead of patents that hand pharmaceutical companies monopolies for years, Edwards (pictured) wants to give cash rewards to drug makers that come up with innovative new medicines for certain key disorders. Anybody would then be free to make the medicines. He expects the approach would contain drug prices while still encouraging innovation. Mr Edwards, who by the way has taken a lot of money from the trial lawyers lobby, is either so stupid that it fathoms the imagination to think that he could be a candidate for President or is just one ignorant person.



John Edwards is a multi-millionaire trial lawyer. Since he thinks millionaires don't pay enough taxes, will he donate his $40,000 annual salary from the UNC to the U.S. Treasury? Has he started to calculate what is his own "fair share" of taxes and start paying that, regardless of current tax law? Will he sign a pledge stating he will never "evade" taxes via tax-free investments, like munis?


Edwards became one of America's wealthiest trial lawyers by winning record jury verdicts and settlements in cases alleging that the botched treatment of women in labor and their deliveries caused infants to develop cerebral palsy, a brain disorder that causes motor function impairment and lifelong disability. Although he was involved in other types of personal injury litigation, Edwards specialized in infant cerebral palsy and brain damage cases during his early days as a trial lawyer and with the Raleigh, N.C., firm of Edwards & Kirby. Edwards has repeatedly told campaign audiences that he fought on behalf of the common man against the large insurance companies. But a political critic with extensive knowledge of Edwards' legal career in North Carolina told CNSNews.com a different story.


"Edwards always helped the little guy as long as he got a million dollars out of it," said the source, who did not want to be identified according to CBS News. So one has to wonder if Mr Edwards would be willing to support legislation that would limit attorney caps on award settlements against pharmaceutical companies so that the people in class action suits could get more than just enough cash for a week or two? Of course not.


In all likelihood Mr Edwards wife is taking a wealth of drugs to help her fight her cancer and lead a better quality of life. Maybe he should look at these drugs and determine how many might be around in the future if his idea takes root.
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