I knew it, it just had to be. The lead story in Wednesday's newsletter was that just had to be a massive conflict of interest for Vioxx to be introduced after killing 55,000 people. Here is my quote from Wednesday:

At this time I have no details on the physicians who were on this "expert" FDA advisory panel, but I would not be surprised to find out that there is massive conflict of interest involved. Please don't be shocked, but massive conflict of interest is a regular event with the FDA.

Well, let me provide an update. The today the NY Times found the conflict of interest. They found that according to disclosures in medical journals and other public records, ten of the 32 members of the FDA expert advisory panel who last week endorsed continued marketing Vioxx have consulted in recent years for the drugs' makers. If the 10 advisers had not cast their votes, the committee would have voted 14 to 8 that Vioxx should not return to the market.

It was so darn obvious. There was no other way that this drug could have been approved to kill even more people. Makes absolutely no sense unless you factor in corporate greed, pure unadulterated corporate greed that places money ahead of human life, pain and suffering.

If this doesn't get wake you up to just how EVIL the drug companies are then I simply don't know what will. This is one of the biggest stories this year and the media is spending countless hours expanding on the Pope's tracheotomy when they can highlight the incredible evil that is occurring under their very noses.

The Center for Science in the Public Interest, an advocacy group in Washington that maintains a large database of scientists' industry ties culled from disclosures in medical journals and other public documents, analyzed the panel members' affiliations at the request of The New York Times. Thank God for the NY Times, one of the best investigative papers in the world.

New York Times February 25, 2005