In 1990 the Mexican government hired bm to sell the North American Free Trade Agreement ( nafta) to the American public, media and politicians. bm subcontracted this job to one of its subsidiaries. One of nafta 's most nefarious consequences will be the dismantling of Canada's government-run health care system. As it places very strict limits on what domestic or foreign corporations can do, its more progressive features -- such as compulsory licensing in order to control drug costs -- will eventually be challenged as barriers to trade. Once the Canadian system is gutted by nafta 's notoriously secretive and undemocratic dispute resolution mechanisms, Canadian citizens will have no choice but to turn to the 'free market' for medical services and insurance. However, American and Canadian pharmaceutical and insurance companies that want to crack open the Canadian market are frustrated by the fact that Canadians are very happy with their health care system. Worse yet, more and more Americans, especially in Vermont, are now calling for the introduction of single-payer health insurance in their country -- a step in the direction of a Canadian-style system.
bm has plenty of experience in matters of public health. On behalf of client Philip Morris, bm created the National Smokers' Alliance ( nsa ) to fight against smoking restrictions. According to John Stauber, now the editor for PR Watch and Sheldon Rampton, co-author of Toxic Sludge is Good for You: Lies, Damn Lies and the Public Relations Industry, Common Courage Press, 1995, nsa "is a state-of-the-art campaign that uses full-page newspaper ads, direct telemarketing, paid canvassers, (toll free) numbers and newsletters to bring thousands of smokers into its ranks each week." The nsa is headed by bm vice-president Thomas Humber and its members include executives of bm and its subsidiaries. In addition to this, bm was hired by the company A H Robbins when it's 'Dalkon Shield iud ' contraceptive injured thousands of women who used it, and it is currently promoting the 'virtues' of Eli Lilly's anti-depressant wonder drug Prozac.
Pharmaceutical transnational corporations in the us , eleven of which are bm 's clients and major insurance companies, including, predictably, quite a few of bm clients, like Met Life, Equitable Life, Aetna, State Farm and Mutal of Omaha are fusing into superconglomerates known as health maintenance organizations ( hmo s). According to Joyce Nelson, "During 1994, both the pharmaceutical industry and the private insurance industry consolidated into even bigger players on the health care scene, with bm playing a major role in arranging the mergers among its clients."
What is the advantage these superconglomerates can garner? hmo s are not required to cover all illnesses or people, but can instead discriminate against elderly citizens and people with health problems in order to reduce operating costs. Its all business -- public health and human lives.
The author is a guest lecturer and research associate at the Institute for Social Ecology at Goddard College in Vermont, usA