Dr. Bill Frist, Friend of Thimerasol

(Posted by Patrick Sullivan Jr.)

Flu Vaccine-Makers' Liability Limited in U.S. Senate Measure
Dec. 22 (Bloomberg) -- Drugmakers would be protected from lawsuits related to flu vaccines under a $453 billion defense budget passed by the U.S. Senate.

The provision, added to the legislation last night by Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, a Tennessee Republican, would require patients seeking to sue a drugmaker to prove the company engaged in willful misconduct when producing a vaccine. The measure fails to provide compensation for injuries or deaths related to a vaccine, said Senator Edward Kennedy, a Massachusetts Democrat.

"Generally around here we measure who the winners are and who the losers are," Kennedy said on the floor of the Senate. "Drug companies come out time and time again, but never, never, ever, ever like they have with this sweetheart deal."

First, does it bother anyone else that it is ok to attach totally unrelated riders to a bill?  It's outrageous that to supply bullets for troops in harms way, there are these backroom negotiations for totally unrelated riders.  Ridiculous!

But if we follow the money, Bill Frist, MD is clearly a friend to the Pharmaceutical industry.  Aside from the alleged ties between Dr. Frist and Eli Lilly, during the 2000 election cycle, Dr. Frist received $121,957 in campaign donations from the Pharmaceutical industry.  Interesting.

But don't think Senator Kennedy is clean of any Big Pharma money as he has received $51,450 so far during the 2006 election cycle.  Enough to rank as number 7 on the list of Top 20 recipients.

(And just to give a little more perspective, during 2004 Presidential race, George Bush received $1,028,430 from Pharma versus John Kerry's $596,873.)

If I were to only follow the money here, I think what Senator Kennedy could really be trying to say is, "Lawyers are really getting the short end of the stick with this sweetheart deal."  Of course they are because Dr. Frist is limiting the liability of vaccine makers, and has been trying to do so ever since this pesky mercury-autism theory started getting some attention.  (Of course, guess which industry contributes the most to politics and who is their top recipient?)

All that aside, I do agree that Pharma is getting away with a big one here.  And it's the parents and kids who are getting the shortest end of the stick.  Thanks Bill, Teddy, et al.

Technorati Tags: Mercury, Autism, Bill Frist, Ted Kennedy, Politics, Riders

Comments

[Scott Shoemaker]

AWESOME post! But you let old Bill Frist off of the hook way too easy… His pockets are much deeper than only being able to hold $121,957. That crooked and greedy bastard has gotten way more than that according to Kennedy’s Deadly Immunity Article published earlier this year. You can also find it outlined here.

Kennedy states…

Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, who has received $873,000 in contributions from the pharmaceutical industry, has been working to immunize vaccine makers from liability in 4,200 lawsuits that have been filed by the parents of injured children. On five separate occasions, Frist has tried to seal all of the government's vaccine-related documents -- including the Simpsonwood transcripts -- and shield Eli Lilly, the developer of thimerosal, from subpoenas. In 2002, the day after Frist quietly slipped a rider known as the "Eli Lilly Protection Act" into a homeland security bill, the company contributed $10,000 to his campaign and bought 5,000 copies of his book on bioterrorism. Congress repealed the measure in 2003 -- but earlier this year, Frist slipped another provision into an anti-terrorism bill that would deny compensation to children suffering from vaccine-related brain disorders. "The lawsuits are of such magnitude that they could put vaccine producers out of business and limit our capacity to deal with a biological attack by terrorists," says Andy Olsen, a legislative assistant to Frist.

Why does he go through all of the trouble? Do you think this guy might know something about mercury containing vaccines causing brain disorders? Hmmmm… If not, then why would he add something to a bill that is totally unrelated, and why would it even be added if there was no Evidence of Harm that vaccines cause brain disorders? Forget the evidence of harm crap, how about making these companies that use thimerosal provide evidence of safety? Mercury is the second deadliest element to humans, and we are still injecting it into babies and pregnant women. There have been no effective biological tests done to prove that it is safe to use in vaccines. Children are getting damaged, and parents are getting screwed.

As far as I am concerned, if Sen. Frist ever makes a Presidential run as many predict, I would be more willing to vote for JoJo the dog faced clown boy or anyone else who is running against him. Frist has time and time again benefited from trying to protect pharmaceutical companies. As far as I am concerned, if he has knowingly protected pharmaceutical companies that have severely damaged an entire generation of children, then he will go straight to Hell!

[Erik Nanstiel]

Scott, great comments! I for one am a huge believer in the concept of "karma." What you do in this world comes back to you like ripples in a pond. Frist may think these pharma favors merely come back to him in the form of kickbacks... but in reality, he's headed for a magnificent fall...as is our illustrious president, dubya. I have to agree, also, with the good Dr. (Boyd) Haley, who said (and I paraphrase) "there's a special place in hell reserved for them."

I'd like to see a courageous attorney general open an investigation on these conflicts of interest...and make things ugly enough for the public to demand reforms in the system. The way things are now, wolves are allowed to guard the henhouse, and it has to stop.

Erik