<
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-03-21/behind-americas-decades-long-fight-to-dismantle-the-pbs/105078864>
"For decades, America's pharmaceutical giants have been plotting to torpedo
Australia's Pharmaceuticals Benefits Scheme (PBS).
Twenty years ago, they scored a huge victory when they secured major
concessions from the Howard government, as America and Australia negotiated the
Australia-US Free Trade Agreement.
Big pharma was at it again during the Obama years when Australia was on the
cusp of signing up to the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP).
A multilateral trade deal, the TPP was designed to build a regional bloc
against China.
Buried in the detail, however, were clauses that quietly entrenched the power
of major American corporations.
A naive Donald Trump scuppered that deal in his first term, purely because it
was an Obama initiative.
With Trump again in the White House, this time threatening a global trade war,
America's pharmaceutical industry lobbyists, having made huge donations to his
campaign, have seized upon a golden opportunity."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
