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See this is the problem when government is too powerful

Posted: Tue Apr 26, 2011 8:37 pm
by kiryan
Now the government starts excercising its power to decide who can be employed or lead healthcare companies.

This is scary.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000142 ... 26952.html

A government attempt to oust a longtime drug-company chief executive over his company's marketing violations is raising alarms in that industry and beyond about a potential expansion of federal involvement in the business world.

== government ousting a CEO over something his company did. This sounds dangerous.

The Department of Health and Human Services this month notified Howard Solomon of Forest Laboratories Inc. that it intends to exclude him from doing business with the federal government. This, in turn, could prevent Forest from selling its drugs to Medicare, Medicaid and the Veterans Administration. If the government implements its ban, Forest would have to dump Mr. Solomon, now 83 years old, in order to protect its corporate revenue. No drug company, large or small, can afford to lose out on sales to the federal government, a major customer.

== Freaking insane, this is not "trying to oust" this is has effective power to fire anyone in any healthcare company (later it seems the company has to have been convicted of a criminal complaint).

The campaign against drug-company CEOs is part of a larger Obama administration effort to pursue individual executives blamed for wrongdoing rather than simply punishing companies.

== that sounds ok, but don't we have something called the legal system? you know the one holder and Obama are so proud of?

The "action against the CEO of Forest Labs is a game changer," said Richard Westling, a corporate defense attorney in Nashville who has represented executives in different industries against the government.

== no shit, but it sounds like the power is old, just never used.

According to Mr. Westling, "It would be a mistake to see this as solely a health-care industry issue. The use of sanctions such as exclusion and debarment to punish individuals where the government is unable to prove a direct legal or regulatory violation could have wide-ranging impact." An exclusion penalty could be more costly than a Justice Department prosecution.

== thats an understatement. they can't prove it in court, or don't care to bother so they just say X has to go.

A federal court made the deal final in March. Forest Labs representatives said they were shocked when the intent-to-ban notice was received a few weeks later, because Mr. Solomon wasn't accused by the government of misconduct.

== this is absolutely insane at face value. You want to get rid of a CEO because the company was accused of marketing misconduct... what about the VP of sales? I mean yea for top down leadership, but ... seriously... you realize the implications... this CEO can never work in healthcare... anywhere... ever again (maybe as a consultant I suppose).

In October 2010, HHS outlined how it could use the exclusion tool on individuals without proof of personal misconduct. The first application involved the CEO of a smaller pharmaceutical maker in St. Louis. The executive stepped down. He has since pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor marketing violation and was sentenced to prison and fined.

== so they used it reasonably in one circumstance so they should have broad discretion to use it anytime they want. Again.. for a marketing violation? seriously? They need to exercise this power over marketing? Guilty for a MISDEMEANOR and the government can force you to fire anyone/everyone it wants to in the company.

Forest pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor in connection with its marketing of Celexa as a treatment for children and adolescents before the drug won approval for pediatric use from the Food and Drug Administration. The company also paid fines over civil accusations.

== and the marketing violation, probably pushing off label use... for something that was eventually approved. A misdemeanor for something that was approved = CEO banned from working in healthcare industry.