Monday, March 2, 2009
Money Talks: The Movie
A sequel to the wonderful Pharma expose' SIDE EFFECTS.
SYNOPSIS
"If we want it to be different, we have to insist on it."
Jerome Hoffman MD, UCLA Medical School
This 50-minute documentary was created to give an in-depth, academic perspective on the questionable marketing tactics of the pharmaceutical industry, and features the commentary of investigative journalists and medical professionals including Dr. John Abramson, author of Overdosed America, and Prescription Access Litigation Project Director, Alex Sugerman-Brozan. Other notable interviewees include Dr. Bob Goodman of Columbia University, founder of the ‘No Free Lunch’ program, and Dr. Jerome Hoffman of UCLA Medical School.
Engaging and informative, the film offers a reasoned approach to the subject matter and is a terrific way to stimulate discussion about the ethical implications of pharmaceutical promotion. Filmmaker Kathleen Slattery-Moschkau has received both national and international press coverage, including The Atlantic Monthly, British Medical Journal, CNN, The New York Times, Psychology Today, USA Today and The Economist.
Notable Comments
"Money Talks presents a wealth of unsettling information and forward-looking ideas about one of the most urgent issues facing our country today. This film should be required viewing for anyone concerned about the complexities and failings of the American health care system." -Meghann Matwichuk, University of Delaware, Media Librarian/Video Round Table Notable Videos for Adults Committee Member
"Money Talks filled the gaps... things are far worse than I suspected" -Evelyn Hampton, UTNE
"Money Talks exposes shady drug industry practices... it is
important for anyone who wants to understand how
corporations are controlling their health."
-Heather Gehlert, AlterNet
"I recommend the documentary film Money Talks: Profits Before Patient Safety" -Christine Northrup M.D.
"A chilling documentary" -Marilynn Larkin, The Lancet
“Viewers of Slattery-Moschkau’s work will be forever changed in their perception of the pharmaceutical industry." -Bradley Lewis, M.D. Ph.D., NYU
“This documentary should be required viewing in all health care educational programs.” -David A. Apgar, R.Ph.
“The facts uncovered in this film shocked even me--and I've been a 'prevention-first' doc all along.”
-Malynn Utzinger, MD
"I can’t imagine a more compelling way to drive home the idea that we all need to be proactive about the medications we are taking and giving to our children... simply riveting.” -Dr. Dominick Riccio, chairman of the Just Say “Know” to Prescription Drugs Campaign
Why we made Money Talks: Profits Before Patient Safety
Money Talks was created to address the outstanding audience questions raised by Side Effects, Kathleen Slattery-Moschkau’s first film about issues involving the pharmaceutical industry.
The production team turned the camera on the experts with the goal of creating informative bonus material for the Side Effects DVD. Once the filmmakers reviewed the compelling interview footage, they realized that the material deserved its own project. The result is this engaging and straight shooting documentary that holds a mirror up to the pharmaceutical industry’s marketing tactics, exposing how their pervasive influence ultimately compromises healthcare. It is our hope that Money Talks will help people make educated choices about their own health and about the future of medicine in the U.S.
Link
AstraZeneca: "Lisa has done a great smoke-and-mirrors job"
AstraZeneca “buried” unfavorable studies of its $4.4 billion blockbuster psychiatric drug Seroquel, according to internal documents released Friday in a legal dispute between the company and lawyers for thousands of people who sued the company because they said the drug caused diabetes and weight gain.
In one of the documents, a 1997 e-mail message, Richard Lawrence, an AstraZeneca official, praised Lisa Arventis, the company’s Seroquel project physician at the time, for minimizing adverse findings in a “cursed” study. He wrote: “Lisa has done a great ‘smoke-and-mirrors job!’ ”
Lawyers suing AstraZeneca, a British drug maker whose United States headquarters are in Delaware, said the documents show it tried to hide the diabetes link for nearly a decade.
“AstraZeneca knew about the risk of weight gain and diabetes in 2000 and not only failed to warn physicians and patients but marketed in a way that represented there was no risk,” Edward F. Blizzard, a Houston-based lead lawyer on the cases, said in a conference call with reporters.
Read more about the Seroquel scandal at the New York Times. For the best investigative journalism anywhere on this, go see what Philip Dawdy has to say at Furious Seasons.
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