Commie Rant, dont ever talk to me about the wonders of capitalism, ever, again edition. From time to time Ive used the phrase orphan diseases as just one of the many important things capitalism cant solve. Conventionally that is defined as anything that afflicts too small a percentage of the population to be profitable. But it also means diseases that afflcit millions of people -- in poor countries, like -- and you probably knew this was coming -- EBOLA. Almost a decade ago, scientists from Canada and the United States reported that they had created a vaccine that was 100 percent effective in protecting monkeys against the Ebola virus. The results were published in a respected journal, and health officials called them exciting. The researchers said tests in people might start within two years, and a product could potentially be ready for licensing by 2010 or 2011. It never happened. The vaccine sat on a shelf. Only now is it undergoing the most basic safety tests in humans — with nearly 5,000 people dead from Ebola and an epidemic raging out of control in West Africa... Dr. James E. Crowe Jr., the director of a vaccine research center at Vanderbilt University, said that academic researchers who developed a prototype drug or vaccine that worked in animals often encountered a “biotech valley of death” in which no drug company would help them cross the finish line. To that point, the research may have cost a few million dollars, but tests in humans and scaling up production can cost hundreds of millions, and bringing a new vaccine all the way to market typically costs $1 billion to $1.5 billion, Dr. Crowe said. “Who’s going to pay for that?” he asked. “People invest in order to get money back.” So if youre scared of Ebola, put that in your pipe and smoke it. Its not an isolated incident. Youre scared of a virus. You should be scared of the system that could have stopped it, but didnt, because the people who were catching it were poor. But unlike for-profit pharmaceutical companies, and angry, low-information I know how to spend my money better than the gubmint voters, and the rich, ambitious politicians who exacerbate and exploit their ignorance, a deadly virus doesnt examine your bank account before deciding its next move. I virus treats everyone as equals. A virus -- but not our socioeconomic system. Congratulations, capitalism. This is squarely on you, and the people who support you.
Posted on: Tue, 28 Oct 2014 11:07:25 +0000
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