Testing Drugs on India's Poor 531
theodp writes to tell us Wired is reporting that a lot of medical research firms are using India's poor as a hot test bed. From the article: "The sudden influx of drug companies to India resembles the gold rush frontier, according to Sean Philpott, managing editor of The American Journal of Bioethics. 'Not only are research costs low, but there is a skilled work force to conduct the trials'"
Wait (Score:4, Funny)
This is the best idea I have heard in months (Score:0, Funny)
Pff.. (Score:4, Funny)
Damn you trained and abled Indian workforce!
outsourcing (Score:4, Funny)
Re:Wait (Score:3, Funny)
The Miracle of Birth: The Third World (Score:4, Funny)
The Miracle of Birth, Part 2: The Third World
Mom: Come on, now. Out you go. Now, uh, Dalip, Bhim, Harinder, Ajit, Indra, Mandeep, it is being past your bedtime.
Kids: Oh, mother!
Mom: Now, not to be arguing! Lakshmi, Sita, Gita, Surinder...
Dad: Wait! I have something to be telling whole family.
Mom: Oh, quick - please to be going and getting the others in, Pradeep.
Kids: What could it be being?
Dad: The call center is closed! There is to be no more work. We are now to live among the untouchable.
Kids: [whispering among themselves]
Dad: Come in my little loves, I am having no option but to be selling you all for scientific experiments.
(Dad goes on to blame the Anglican church for not standing up to the (bloody) Catholics (who are to be filling up the whole world with children they cannot afford to be bloody feeding) when it came to talking about contraception in the UN and WHO forums on overpopulation, and the whole family breaks out into song... You know the rest.)
There are Jews in the world, there are Buddhists,
Anglicans and Catholics, and then,
There are those that outsource to Mohammed, but
I've never been one of them...
"Skilled work force"? (Score:5, Funny)
Umm, so essentially their skill is they're sick and need drugs? Talk about a back handed compliment. Well, Rahim, you have just the skills we're looking for, Leprosy.
Animal rights activist sheer! (Score:4, Funny)
Trinity (Score:3, Funny)
I know her as well, and it's been a real boon for her. Turns out her second head can control it almost entirely so her grades are unnatural. And don't let her challenge you to a game of twister.
Re:Pff.. (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Wait (Score:5, Funny)
Are you kidding? The unemployment rate for lab rats will skyrocket! How are the poor rats supposed to feed their kids? WON'T SOMEBODY THINK OF THE RAT CHILDREN?
Re:Wait (Score:2, Funny)
They don't care about humans except for arguably pretty, rich, famous ones [furisdead.com] that wear animal skins.
From my dead, cold back, waste, and hands will they take my leather coat, leather belt, and cheeseburger. People are so much weirder than "animals".
Re:Wait (Score:3, Funny)
Damn right it is. Like global warming, it's all down to those greedy capitalists exploiting the environment. Nothing to do with me driving my kid to school in my nice new SUV, is it?
Re:Wait (Score:1, Funny)
Re:Wait (Score:2, Funny)
From bad to worse (Score:4, Funny)
Re:Wait (Score:3, Funny)
They already do. There are any number of drugs that are available in Europe, Canada, Japan, etc., that haven't been approved by the FDA, and some that have been banned by the FDA.
You would think that an approved medication in Europe or Britain would automatically gain approval in the US, but no.
I can see that the big benefit to the Pharmas is being able to do more Phase I (i.e., does it kill you/LD50) and Phase II trials (does it have medical benefit) with much less interference from university review boards, for one.
Besides, what exactly is an "informed" decision?
Dr: This is an experimental drug. In rats, it has been shown to kill off the kind of tumor you have rather well. But we haven't tested it on...
Me: Ok, I'll take it.
Dr: But...OK. Here you go.
Me: Mmm! It tastes like almonds...can't breathe...gasp cack...