Most people probably saw the news about the sharp fall in the incidence of breast cancer. This was attributed to a drop in the use of hormone replacement treatment for menopause. And why were so many women getting hormone replacement treatment? Well, the pharmaceutical industry pushed it as a way of combatting aging.
That is the incentive structure created by the system of patent financed research. Government patent monopolies give drug companies huge mark-ups on each prescription they sell, which means that they have enormous incentive to try to get their drugs used as widely as possible. The fact that they may not be entirely safe is secondary. CEOs don't get $100 million paychecks for saving lives, they get this money by boosting the bottom line (and putting their friends
on the compensation committees).
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