Big Pharma self-medicates in a bid to lift ailing returns

Tough times are forcing firms to diversify, says Richard Wachman Big pharmaceutical companies are looking for new sources of profit. Many blockbuster medicines are coming off patent and prices for prescription drugs are falling as governments and health insurers demand bigger discounts. In the US, the public has turned against the drug firms, which for years could push through huge price increases thanks to their marketing clout and influence on Capitol Hill. Revealingly, Tachi Yamada, former boss of research and development at GlaxoSmithKline, was reported recently as saying that it used to be an industry in which 'it was almost too easy to be successful'. Now life is harder for Big Pharma which must also battle with regulators demanding higher standards in the wake of a number of high-profile health scares. But the... [read full story]