From GritPost: As CNBC originally reported, Goldman Sachs published a report on April 10 called “The Genome Revolution,” which evaluated the question, “Is curing patients a sustainable business model?” Analyst Salveen Richter explained that new forms of long-term cures involving gene therapy may be good for humanity, but bad for capitalism. “The potential to deliver “one shot cures” is one of the most attractive aspects of gene therapy, genetically engineered cell therapy, and gene editing. However, such treatments offer a very different outlook with regard to recurring revenue versus chronic therapies,” Richter wrote. “While this proposition carries tremendous value for patients and society, it could represent a challenge for genome medicine developers looking for sustained cash flow.” I think most of us know that curing patients is bad business, but it's shocking to actually see one of the biggest capitalists admit it so openly.
This analyst is probably gunning for gene therapy corporates... he is probably trying to trump up their image/ branding so that more tax payer's $$$ can be invested in gene research. Otherwise, he is just another analyst stating the obvious because he wants to be in the limelight.
I think, based on experience, that there are plenty of people who either don't know or don't believe drug companies make all their decisions on the basis of profitability, and how far into healthcare that reaches.
One of the areas where capitalism just falls flat on its face. Businesses intentionally retarding medical advancement because imperfect treatments are more profitable than finding an actual cure. Greed > human life
One example of this dynamic might be the resistance of the drug marketing system to Nasal Crom, an over-the counter nasal cromolyn sodium salt spray which "toughens" the mast cells in the nasal passages so that they are less likely to produce histamine when exposed to allergens like pollen. It is supposed to be used in advance of allergy seasons by several weeks and works pretty well. I have been using it on and off for years and have found when I use it I do much better allergy-wise,,,but then do not have to purchase numerous other allergy remedies on the market that only relieve symptoms. This year, when I went looking for my spring supply of Nasal Crom, it was almost impossible to find. The CVS store mentioned as a source on the Nasal Crom website had only one bottle, and when they tried to order more for me the warehouse they use was also out, and then unlisted it altogether. Luckily I found three more at a Rite Aide in a different area. I once told a pharmacy worker how well Nasal Crom worked, only to overhear the pharmacist later tell that worker that "They pay people money to say things like that". You really can't win. I am motivated to keep trying, though, since I personally benefit from its existence, even as I did for relief from catching colds before they removed the Zicam nose spray from the market. (Admittedly I did lose some of my sense of smell using that--especially to the scents of my favorite flowers--but it was worth it to prevent the horrible colds and subsequent secondary lung problems I would get--and I fond their zinc tablets do well for me now.)