{"by":"wooby","id":24211437,"kids":[24212027,24212220],"parent":24210997,"text":"Pharmaceutical companies have every incentive to make their drugs safe, because if their drugs hurt people, the drugs will not sell.<p>Many drugs have passed FDA approval but later killed people. If the FDA were a private company, it might have gone out of business. But as a government monopoly, it's very hard to stop paying for. Between pharma companies, the government, and individual patients, the FDA has the least stake in the health of a particular patient.<p>UL is an example of a non-government organization that offers product safety certification. You see the UL seal on most consumer electric appliances. Imagine an FDA seal.<p>Drugs are not magical or special. They are a product like any other, and it is the consumer's right to choose a doctor, and for that doctor to choose proper medication. We regularly choose the best mechanics, plumbers, and other specialists we can find, and their reputation is partly a function of the type and quality of the parts and tools they use.","time":1597851073,"type":"comment"}