August 20, 2014
Brian Shilhavy
Source: Health Impact News Daily
The $100 billion dollar cholesterol-lowering statin drug industry is
under attack, as thousands of Americans are filing lawsuits against the
manufacturers of cholesterol-lowering drugs such as
Lipitor.
Research continues to confirm just how dangerous these drugs are, with yet another study
published recently linking increased statin drug use to type 2
diabetes. Since the study was published by the American Diabetes
Association, these known risks to cholesterol-lowering drugs can no
longer be denied or defended, and the lawsuits are pouring in at a rapid
pace. Most of the lawsuits at this point are from women who have
suffered with diabetes as a result of taking cholesterol-lowering drugs,
but lawsuits over breast cancer, Alzheimer’s, liver damage, and others
may soon follow now that it is generally known how dangerous these drugs
are.
This information regarding a tsunami of lawsuits against cholesterol
drug manufacturers has yet to be widely published by the mainstream
media, however. To find out the magnitude of the lawsuits being filed
against statin drug manufacturers, we turn to law firms who are reaping
the fruit of litigation against Big Pharma.
According to statistics supplied by various law firms, there were 464
claims filed against Lipitor as of April 15, 2014, which increased to
703 by May 15, and then to 846 by June 16. As of mid-July 2014 over 959
claims have been filed for damages due to Lipitor alone. There are also
many claims currently filed against Crestor, the next nearest competitor
to Lipitor, and undoubtedly other similar drugs now sold under generic
labels. These lawsuits now number well over 1,000, and are increasing at
a rapid pace.
Lipitor is by far the most profitable drug in the history of mankind
among all pharmaceutical products, let alone being the most profitable
cholesterol drug before its patent expired at the end of 2011. Sales to
date from this one particular cholesterol-lowering statin drug has
exceeded $140 billion.
Lipitor benefited from the change in marketing laws in 1997 that
allowed pharmaceutical companies in the U.S. to advertise their products
directly to consumers. Pfizer convinced an entire generation of
Americans that they needed a pill to lower their cholesterol in order to
prevent heart disease, in what will go down as one of the most
brilliant and unethical marketing schemes of all time.
After Lipitor’s patent expired at the end of 2011, the FDA issued its first
warnings against statin drugs,
which includes: liver injury, memory loss, diabetes, and muscle damage.
Soon after issuing these warnings, the lawsuits started trickling in.
Today, with more and more studies being published linking statin drug
use to various side effects, those lawsuits have become a tidal wave,
even though you are not likely to hear about this in the mainstream
media.
Big Pharma Fights Back – They Do Not Want you to Know Cholesterol Drugs are Worthless and Dangerous
As is often the case when learning about the criminal activities of
Big Pharma, much of the research is conducted outside of the U.S. The
above
referenced study published recently by the
American Diabetes Association, for example, was conducted in Italy.
Since the patent on Lipitor has expired, pharmaceutical companies
have been searching for the next big blockbuster cholesterol drug to
bring in profits like Lipitor did. One of these newer
cholesterol-lowering drugs is U.S.-made Zetia by Merck. Alberto
Donzelli, head of education, appropriateness, and evidence-based
medicine at Milan’s public health authority in Italy, has issued
warnings about the dangers of this drug, and advised doctors in Italy
not to prescribe it. Merck responded with two cease-and-desist orders
and the threat of suing Donzelli. Donzelli backed down, but Merck has
received a lot of public pressure in Europe since the story was picked
up by the
British Medical Journal. It was also reported in the
Wall Street Journal
here in the U.S. When doctors and medical professionals oppose Big
Pharma, they put their careers and sometimes their lives on the line.
Dr
MaryAnne Demasi from the Catalyst. Her investigative reporting on the
dangers of statin drugs has now been banned in Australia.
The fact that cholesterol is not responsible for heart disease, and
that cholesterol-lowering drugs provide no statistical advantages to
prolonging life by reducing heart attacks, has been widely reported for
many years now by those of us in the alternative health media. One
mainstream media source in Australia, however, decided to air a
documentary on the Cholesterol Myth and “Cholesterol Drug Wars”. The
show featured Dr. MaryAnne Demasi and interviewed several doctors and
health officials who dared to tell the truth regarding the cholesterol
drug scam. It was broadcast by
ABC
Australia in late 2013, under vigorous protests from the pharmaceutical
industry. The videos were eventually removed from their website, and the
network issued a statement retracting their endorsement of the show.
However, they can still be seen on YouTube for now (watch them here.)
What’s Next in the Cholesterol Drug Wars?
One in four Americans over the age of 45 are currently on statin
drugs. In spite of the increased research linking these drugs to
diabetes, Alzheimer’s Disease, liver damage, breast cancer, among many
others (see:
Consumer Alert: 300+ Health Problems Linked To Statin Drugs),
government-funded Big Pharma agencies continue to promote statin drugs
and are attempting to get more Americans to take them.
New guidelines
put out by the American Heart Association earlier this year (2014)
would more than double the number of Americans taking statin drugs. Big
Pharma educated doctors and health officials have been so indoctrinated
by the cholesterol theory of heart disease, that there have actually
been debates about
adding cholesterol lowering drugs to drinking water! In their minds, every person on the planet should be taking these cholesterol-lowering drugs.
However, as we are seeing, Americans are starting to wake up to the
Cholesterol Myth and the
Statin Drug
scam, and those injured by these drugs are seeking damages in
litigation at a very fast pace here in 2014, in spite of the mainstream
media blackout due to intimidation from Big Pharma.
So what’s next?
If we follow the pattern of Big Pharma when their products can no
longer be supported in a free market due to lack of consumer confidence
and demand, and massive litigation due to faulty products, they will
probably seek some kind of government protection from these lawsuits.
Such government protection will allow them to distribute their
cholesterol drugs through government drug programs such as Medicare and
Medicaid, and the new Obamacare. With the baby boomer generation heading
into their senior years, it is just too large of a market for them to
give up without a fight.
The logic they will use with politicians in Washington D.C. will be
very similar to the logic currently used by the vaccine market:
Americans are too stupid to know better, so we need laws to protect us
and our products against litigation so we can continue to manufacture
and distribute them to people who don’t want them, because they don’t
realize how much they need our drugs.
This logic is clearly seen in the above referenced American Diabetes
study on statins,
where they state in their conclusion: “Benefits of statins in reducing
cardiovascular events clearly overwhelm the diabetes risk.” In other
words, we need to sacrifice those who are harmed by our products for
“the greater good” of society, because our drugs are necessary for
public health.
This kind of logic and legal protection against their dangerous
products is exactly what happened in 1986, when Big Pharma convinced
Congress that vaccines were necessary for public health, in spite of the
fact that they were causing great harm and sales were slumping, while
they were incurring great legal bills in litigation. They threatened
Congress to stop manufacturing vaccines due to all the litigation, and
Congress obliged by passing legislation that removed all legal liability
for damages due to vaccines. That law was then upheld years later, in
2011, by the U.S. Supreme Court. Today, you cannot sue Big Pharma for
damages due to their vaccines, which has resulted in the U.S.
administering more vaccines per child than any other country in the
world. Without legal protection, the industry would not have survived.
Or if it had survived, we would have far fewer and far safer vaccines in
the marketplace today. Instead, we mass vaccinate with an ineffective
annual flu vaccine that is crippling hundreds of people a year (see:
Government Pays Damages to Vaccine Victims: Flu Shot Most Dangerous with GBS and Death Settlements).
The flu shot is being mandated for certain segments of the population
as a condition for employment or school, with increasing pressure to
mandate forced vaccinations for a greater segment of the population all
in the name of “public health safety”.
Is this kind of government protection and mandated drug distribution
on the horizon for cholesterol-lowering drugs? You can be sure they will
try. It is up to you, the consumer, to stop buying their products now,
and to stop voting for people to represent you in Washington D.C. who
support Big Pharma.
We are currently living in the Dark Ages when it comes to health
freedom, as today’s pharmaceutical companies are the biggest criminals
in the marketplace, having reached
settlements in criminal medical abuses
that reach into the billions of dollars. Yet the government continues
to not only recommend their products, but purchase and distribute them
with YOUR tax dollars via government funded programs such as Medicare,
Medicaid, and Obamacare.
As a consumer, you must resist purchasing these toxic products, and
fight against any kind of mandated “health program” that forces you to
purchase or take their products. History will look back on these Dark
Days of medical tyranny with horror. In the meantime, don’t become a
fatality and statistic to the cholesterol drug scam! If you are
responsible for caring for any seniors, help them to not become a
fatality or statistic as well, by being informed and taking a stand for
your rights!
References
Statins and the Risk of Diabetes: Evidence From a Large Population-Based Cohort Study –
Diabetes Care
FDA Expands Advice on Statin Risks –
FDA.gov
MSD Italy is criticised for threatening legal action over prescription advice to GPs –
British Medical Journal
Merck Threatened to Sue Doc Over Prescribing Advice –
Wall Street Journal
Two Studies Suggest Risk of Diabetes with Statins Such As Crestor –
LawyersandSettlements.com
Lipitor Lawsuits Continue to Be Filed in South Carolina Litigation –
Benzinga.com
