Sickening

More about the book

This exposé reveals how Big Pharma’s relentless quest for profit distorts medical knowledge, misguides doctors, and jeopardizes public health. The U.S. spends over $1.5 trillion annually on healthcare yet ranks a dismal 68th globally in healthy life expectancy. Central to this issue is Big Pharma's dominance over clinical trials, which they fund and control, often keeping critical data secret and influencing the information that healthcare professionals rely on. Dr. John Abramson, an expert on the drug industry’s misleading practices, combines patient narratives with insights from years of involvement in national drug litigation to uncover the financial entanglements that contribute to healthcare dysfunction. Notably, peer reviewers tasked with validating clinical trial reports lack access to complete data, relying instead on summaries shaped by manufacturers. This also applies to experts drafting clinical practice guidelines that set care standards. Drawing from extensive research and insider knowledge of the U.S. medical-industrial complex, this work illuminates the troubling realities of American healthcare and offers a roadmap for meaningful reform.