Some famous men have held the title of the ‘most evil man in America.’ The list is long; consider Charles Manson, Jeffrey Dahmer, Bernie Madoff, Rush Limbaugh or Richard Nixon. They may have deserved the title, but Martin Shkreli may hold the trophy for the remainder of the 21st century.
You may remember Shkreli from last September when he decided to raise the price of a life-saving drug, Daraprim, from $13.50 a pill to $750.00. Turing Pharmaceuticals AG had purchased the drug, and under the control of Shkreli immediately ordered the price increase. The drug has long been used to fight a parasitic condition known as toxoplasmosis, which can be deadly for unborn babies and patients with compromised immune systems including those with HIV or cancer.
Shkreli has since been indicted for securities fraud.
The U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, chaired by representative Jason Chaffetz, ordered Shkreli to appear before the committee on Thursday; he has declined. He is invoking the fifth amendment. He claims that testimony before Congress could influence his criminal trial.
In reality Shkreli is no worse than many CEOs in our nation. The only difference is that he was exposed.
Pharmaceutical companies, in collusion with the FDA, have overpriced necessary drugs for decades. In addition, they are allowed to distribute drugs which eventually have serious side effects, and others which have resulted in death.
Bernie Sanders rejected a contribution from Shkreli. Hillary Clinton asked him to reduce the price of Daraprim to which he tweeted “LOL.”
Where are the GOP candidates on this matter? They are silent; they don’t care.
Op-Ed
By James Turnage
Photo Courtesy of DonkeyHotey
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