Pfizer sues NEJM to stop confidential peer review

As if it's not bad enough that Big Pharma has a compliant FDA that allows anything that fails to kill people, immediately, at least. Big Pharma is supposed to publish test results though they don't unless they are the results they want published. Big Pharma is supposed to stay away from patients but again, they dive right into patient visits to sell their snake oil of the month. Now despite jury rigging the system to their benefit in almost every possible way, that's not enough. Pfizer is now suing the New England Journal of Medicine to reveal their confidential reviewers. Pfizer wants to break the long respected confidential peer review process that has helped raise questions when others were afraid to speak out.

The US courts are due to rule on this case later in the week and despite the obvious blow to confidential peer review, this also once again shows that it's not just consumers who are launching lawsuits, driving up costs. What about the countless lawsuits Big Pharma initiates? How much will this end up costing everyone - including possible lives - if confidential reviews are struck down and a drug kills people? Perhaps Big Pharma ought to move back into the business of helping people instead of only helping their bottom line.