I don't think I was clear in my last post, so I'm submitting this revised version.
Stephen Blackwood recently wrote a post in the Wall Street Journal in which he claimed that Obamacare was denying his mother of the cancer drug Sandostatin.
http://online.wsj.com/...
Yet, Sandostatin isn't a drug to treat cancer, its a drug used to treat diarrhea associated with carcinoid tumors. Obviously, this is a drug that she would need. However, Blackwood makes it seem like Sandostatin is the only drug that can treat her condition when there are plenty of generic forms produced by six different companies. Generic medications are required to be covered under the ACA. Blackwood's mother would has access to these medications under her new insurance plan.
So, why write an article that fails to mention the cheaper generic forms of Sandostatin? Novartis, the company that produces Sandostatin, has had difficulties marketing this drug with all of the cheaper forms available. In fact, Novartis has been in hot water recently over allegations of paying doctors in China to prescribe Sandostatin over cheaper alternatives.
Blackwood has connections to Novartis other than through his mother. Blackwood is one of the directors of the Caring for Carcinoid Foundation. While this foundation is serving a noble cause for those that are suffering from this disease, it does have some connections that call into question why Blackwood would promote Sandostatin while omitting the cheaper generic forms. Novartis is among the list of corporate sponsors for the CFCF. In fact, one of the emeritus directors of the CFCF, Patrick O'Hagan, works for the healthcare division of Bain Capital, specifically promoting ways to boost pharmaceutical profitability. He wrote an article praising Novartis for their marketing acumen.
So, in short, Blackwood might as well have been lying when he failed to mention cheaper alternatives to Sandosatin in his article to the Wall Street Journal. His mother was not denied a cancer drug, she was denied an expensive drug used to treat diarrhea when cheaper alternatives, with the same formulation exist.