The Pharma Puppets Keeping Your Drug Prices High

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Six supposed patient advocacy groups are closely linked to drugmakers and pushing industry-aligned agendas, according to a new report.

May 22, 2025
Helen Santoro

At least six organizations that claim to champion patient rights have deep financial and operational ties to Big Pharma and work to advance corporate profits. These industry front groups routinely lobby in line with the pharmaceutical industry’s priorities, challenge drug price negotiations in court briefings, and promote the industry’s interests in public statements, according to new research.

The findings are the latest example of how pharmaceutical companies are leveraging the legitimacy of patient advocacy groups to further their corporate aims, which are often in direct conflict with the patient rights such groups claim to support.

A report published this Monday by Patients For Affordable Drugs, a national patient advocacy nonprofit, reveals that six organizations ostensibly dedicated to expanding health research and health care access in fact receive significant funding from the pharmaceutical industry, have leadership with ongoing pharmaceutical industry connections, or both.

“There’s clearly a revolving door between many of these groups and between pharma,” said Merith Basey, executive director of Patients For Affordable Drugs, which does not receive funding from pharmaceutical groups. The groups “tend to then represent the interests of pharma and their shareholders and not of patients,” more than half of whom are struggling to afford their prescription medications
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[Stargazer99]

1. Another illustration why capitalism is a FAILURE-it is not meeting the needs of the common man but enriching the wealthy

investor. The more profit the wealthy can force out of the system the less problems are solved for our country

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2. Yes, most definitely.

The obstacles before us are overwhelming.

[Skittles]

3. what are the six organizations

thank you

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4. The six:

Fifteen of the Alliance for Aging Research’s 20-person leadership board come from the pharmaceutical industry, including Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson. ( Board of Directors Alliance for Aging Research
https://www.agingresearch.org › About Us
Pfizer, Inc. James E. Eden, EdD. BOARD MEMBER President The Eden Group, LLC. Karen Gally. BOARD MEMBER Associate General Counsel )

The American Action Forum is a conservative think tank and sister organization to the American Action Network, a group that opposes drug pricing reform and has received tens of millions of dollars from PhRMA.

The Center for Medicine in the Public Interest has long-standing financial ties to the pharmaceutical industry, repeatedly receives money from PhRMA, and opposes Medicare drug pricing negotiations.

The Council for Affordable Health Coverage is managed and operated by the pharmaceutical lobbying firm Horizon Government Affairs.

The Pacific Research Institute, a think tank for “free market” policy solutions funded in part by petrochemical tycoon Charles Koch’s right-wing political network, has received money from the PhRMA and drug companies including Pfizer, AstraZeneca, and GlaxoSmithKline.

Seniors 4 Better Care is a front for American Prosperity Alliance, a dark money group that donates millions of dollars to conservative political action committees and attacks drug pricing reforms.

A group of degenerates.