Preview

Business Ethics: The Merck Case

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
578 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Business Ethics: The Merck Case
The actions Merck undertook when marketing Vioxx and emphasizing its safety even after finding out the product’s side effects endangered all its key stakeholders and showed the real face of the company that accented its highly ethical maxims. Cardiovascular side effects of the Vioxx increased the risk of complications that could have caused patient’s death, therefore Merck violated the basic right to life of all the Vioxx consumers. It was already mentioned that Vioxx caused 3468 deaths by heart attack and stroke. All these tragedy events could have been prevented if Merck provided adequate information about all the peculiarities of Vioxx. Even though Merck argued that the withdrawal of tests results was caused by its utilitarian intention
Continue Reading
View Writing Issues

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Merck and Vioxx
    • 972 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Merck and Vioxx

    In May of 1999, the FDA approved the use of rofecoxib. Marketed under the name of Vioxx, rofecoxib was manufactured and distributed by Merck, a large pharmaceutical company. Doctors prescribed the drug as a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory and prescription painkiller. Five years after its release, rofecoxib was withdrawn because of a study that showed the drug more than doubled the risk of heart attack or stroke. Because of Merck’s ongoing and increasing knowledge of the dangerous effects of the drug while continuing to distribute rofecoxib, Merck should be held accountable for acting unethically.…

    • 972 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Vioxx Medication Case Study
    • 830 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Vioxx Medication Case Study

    However, several studies have questioned the cardiovascular safety of Vioxx. The manufacture of Vioxx has announced a voluntary withdrawal of the drug from the U.S. and worldwide market in September 30, 2004. After the company’s own 3 year study was stopped. Two million Americans were taking Vioxx when it was pulled and Merck had said that approximately 20 million people in the U.S. have used the drug. This withdrawal was due to some safety concerns of an increased risk of cardiovascular events, including heart attacks and strokes in patients taking Vioxx during the first 18 months. In the 5 years that Vioxx was on the market over 88,000 and 140,000 cases of heart disease were reported, of those cases 30 to 40 percent were fatal. The records indicate that the action of both Merck and the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) found nearly 30,000 excess cases of heart attacks and sudden cardiac deaths that resulted from the use of this drug between 1999 and 2003. Over 300 lawsuits have been filed against Merck, and was expected that thousand more will…

    • 830 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Unit 1 Homework
    • 900 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Unit 1 Homework

    I think with the aspect of economics the company has done the right thing as far as design great drugs in the past, and often even took losses with the making and delivery of those drugs. When it comes to Vioxx, I tend to believe that they should have informed the public and the doctors prescribing and taking this drug with all their findings and notions before the hard evidence came about. I do believe that not telling the whole truth about their findings to the doctors and the pubic goes against my belief in ethics. If I had anything to do with the distribution of the drug before the 2004 removal from market, I would have really studied the reports and warnings, and if I saw what was being reported and said from the scientist, then I would have stopped the sale of it then, and not wait until 2004. I would then have made a public address and told the public and doctors why we are stopping the sale and production of this drug. This would have again put more faith into the company from the public view as well. This is a hard question because if we look at the tobacco companies, they are still selling tobacco that has been proven over and over again to be harmful to humans and animals. I am a smoker and hopefully one day will quit, but for a company to continue to produce and sell a known harmful and deadly product, this is ethically bad for them as well as our government to even allow it. Where is the ethics in all of this? I will never figure that one out.…

    • 900 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    Res 351 week 2
    • 985 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Res 351 week 2

    Merck & Co. marketed a drug called Vioxx. The drug was said to have less gastrointestinal problems than its competition – Naproxen. However, Vioxx had considerably more side effects including; heart attacks and strokes (Vershoor,C.C, 2006). Merck and Co. were accused of several unethical acts, therefore, the drugs were pulled from the market in September 2004. Unfortunately, not before 100 million prescriptions were filled. Merck & Co. was also accused of misrepresenting or concealing of study results to doctors. The New England Journal of Medicine reported that previous studies of three patients had been withheld. All three patients suffered heart attacks when taking Vioxx. Sales reps for Merck & Co. were trained to use subliminal selling tactics. Additionally, Merck & Co. only chose biased speakers of their products at educational…

    • 985 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Merck, the Fda, and the Vioxx Recall
    • 672 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Merck, the Fda, and the Vioxx Recall

    If I was the CEO of Merck I would have disclosed these risks to the FDA as soon as they were discovered so that the patients currently taking VIOXX would have been able to make their own informed decisions whether to continue taking it or not. Merck profits would have dropped, but patients would have lived and Merck’s legal liabilities would have been far less. By the time Merck withdrew VIOXX, they had known of evidence that it lead to increased cardiovascular risks for at least three years and possibly more and had publicly denied that there was any risk associated with VIOXX (Waymor).…

    • 672 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Blockbuster Recall: A Case Study
    • 1192 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Blockbuster Recall: A Case Study

    Although Merck did voluntarily recall Vioxx after post marketing studies, Merck should have done so earlier in the process with the clinical data Merck obtained in its own studies. Initial questions over adverse cardiac events were report in early clinical trials in 1997 CITATION Law14 \l 1033 (Lawerence & Weber, 2014). The company was responsible for not investigating some unknown reasons of adverse cardiac problems. Instead, the company lobbied the government with lots of money for faster drug approvals and better drug coverage for Medicare recipients. The company spent over five hundred million dollars in promoting sales of the drug Vioxx with marketing representatives and television advertising staring Olympic figure staking medalist Dorothy Hamill CITATION Law14 \l 1033 (Lawerence & Weber, 2014). The success of the marketing efforts were record breaking…

    • 1192 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Powerful Essays

    Ethics and Pharmacare
    • 2854 Words
    • 9 Pages

    Ethics and Pharmacare

    In this paper I will analyze and assess legal and ethical modifications on marketing relations as it relates to both consumers and organizations. This research will analyze three to five ethical issues that relates to marketing and advertising, intellectual property, and regulation of product safety. The discussion of arguing for or against Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) marketing by drug companies will also be analyze. This paper will also determine who regulates compounding pharmacies under the current regulatory scheme, what the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) could/should have done in the PharmaCARE scenario and whether the FDA should be granted more power over compounding pharmacies.…

    • 2854 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Rhetorical Analysis On Merck
    • 866 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Rhetorical Analysis On Merck

    Merck’s open letters employ Aristotle’s idea of rhetoric by building appeal with the reader based on three foundations of ethos: wisdom, virtue and goodwill. This strategy is used in attempt to establish credibility and refute The Lancet claim that pharmaceutical giant “acted out of ruthless, shortsighted, and irresponsible self-interest” in Vioxx case. At first, the both documents try to establish Merck’s good judgment and knowledge by insisting the company conforms to ”scientific discipline and transparency”, performs ”rigorous scientific investigation” and brings “new medicines to patients who need them”. In addition, the “Open Letter” argues that as soon as data confirming the increased risks of Vioxx became available, the pharmaceutical giant “acted promptly and made the decision to voluntary withdraw” the drug. The letters further develop ethos with the audience by demonstrating Merck’s history of doing the right thing: “For more than 100 years,” the company “has produced life-saving benefits for countless…

    • 866 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Powerful Essays

    Business Ethics
    • 2743 Words
    • 11 Pages

    Business Ethics

    Galen McDowell was a good salesperson who knew how to purchase the higher performances out of the salespeople under him. Bob wanted to sign a big contract with Kinan Motor who was his potential client, so he gave this assignment to Galen, and Galen got this opportunity to promote his value to the organisation. Then he made the plan to take them to a strip club which is called Red Ruby.…

    • 2743 Words
    • 11 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Pharmacare's Ethical Issues
    • 169 Words
    • 1 Page

    Pharmacare's Ethical Issues

    When considering the ethical issues related to PharmaCARE’s marketing and advertising, intellectual property and regulation of product safety of AD23 there are three issues. The issues elaborated below are (1) misleading/false advertising, (2) discrimination in distribution and most importantly (3) dangerous products.…

    • 169 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Powerful Essays

    Recall of Vioxx
    • 2135 Words
    • 9 Pages

    Recall of Vioxx

    Merck was relying on the success of Vioxx due to Zocor’s expiring patent and the direct competition Vioxx was engaged in with Celebrex, which had a first mover advantage. While Celebrex was also a Cox-2 inhibitor, Vioxx was the only Cox-2 inhibitor proven to be beneficial for ulcers and gastrointestinal bleeding. Once studies came out suggesting that Vioxx contributed to a greater number of cardiovascular problems than naproxen, Merck seemed to opportunistically interpret these results. Furthermore, Merck did not institute any studies that might have found negative cardiovascular results, and management failed to perform a study that focused specifically on the cardiovascular risks of Vioxx. Instead, Merck spent a record amount on advertising the gastrointestinal benefit of the drug in a period of uncertainty. The…

    • 2135 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Business Ethics Case Study: Newell Brands
    • 300 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Business Ethics Case Study: Newell Brands

    Newell Brands CEO Michael Polk expresses the company’s interest in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). Polk says that Newell Brands has a commitment to make life better for millions of people.…

    • 300 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Drug Companies and Ethics
    • 656 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Drug Companies and Ethics

    After researching pharmaceutical companies, I quickly realized this is a very controversial topic. I’m not certain anyone in many of these companies have very many moral standards. Drug companies seemed to be very profitable from the researchers to the drug reps that deliver “gifts” and sample meds to the doctor’s offices that push their medications.…

    • 656 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Powerful Essays

    Merck's Case Ethical
    • 1756 Words
    • 8 Pages

    Merck's Case Ethical

    Merck was one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world. • Merck was about to lose patent protection of two of its best selling drugs, which had been a significant part of their $2 billion annual sales. • Merck began putting millions of dollars into research (up to $1 billion) and within three years, Merck was able to discover four powerful medications. • Profits weren’t all that Merck cared about; Merck’s founder believed that “medicine is for people. It is not for the profits.” • He also believed that following the “medicine is for people” philosophy would lead to profits and had yet to fail.• River Blindness is caused by parasitic worms, which can be found in the Middle East, Africa and Latin America.• These places are developing, so many citizens are poor. • The worm larvae can enter the body through fly bites, with some people getting thousands a day. • Worms can cause grotesque growths, but the major problem lies in reproduction when millions of progeny are released in the system. •The resulting itching is so intense the infected have committed suicide. • Eventually, the larvae may cause blindness. • Two existing drugs could kill the parasite, but have serious, potentially fatal, side effects. • The only safe combative measure available was insecticides that eventually lose potency with immunity of the flies. • The average drug takes $200 million in research and 12 years time to produce. • In order for companies to stay in business (and ease human pain), they must make complex decisions about which drugs offer the most promise. • Investing time/money into drugs for rare diseases is risky (because the pool of recipients is small). • There are enough people with river blindness that there wouldn’t be a risk of too few people. • Instead, the problem would be that the infected could not afford the medicine. • Merck tested a drug, ivermectin, which effectively killed parasites/worms in…

    • 1756 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Merck, the Fda and the Vioxx Recall
    • 713 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Merck, the Fda and the Vioxx Recall

    I do not believe that Merck made a socially responsible decision when Vioxx was introduced into the pharmaceutical market. Scientists that were involved in product development and testing knew that there were serious health risks that could be side effects of the medication- such as cardiovascular complications. If they considered the lives that could have potentially been and as we know now were affected, the medication could have been revamped with changes that would minimize these harmful side effects. During the development and testing phase for Vioxx – issues regarding the safety of the drug were questioned due to the many cases of heart attacks resulting from the medication (more so than Aleve and Celebrex). The advertising technique that was used was thru direct-to-consumer. This was new in the pharmaceutical industry as it was the first time they were allowed to advertise to consumers. They used an Olympic figure skater as the primary character within their commercials. Consumers then would request this medication, making doctors feel obliged to prescribe. The government and policymakers received large sums of money from the development company during the advertising phase and market introduction. When studies became public of Vioxx users being twice as susceptible to heart attacks, Dr. Kim recommended recalling the drugs due to the elevated risks for users as well as the lack of knowledge as to what was causing the heart attacks. There were mixed emotions for some stating that stronger warning labels should be used and that prescription was to be left for the doctor and patient’s assessment.…

    • 713 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More

Related Topics