Fascinating & Addictive!!
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“As an articling student in TO in the ‘90’s, focusing on IP Law, I had the chance to watch Barry Sherman’s meteoric rise in generics first hand. I even interacted with him on several litigation matters as my Articles were with a top tier firm that represented several international name brand pharmaceutical companies actively involved in suing Apotex & a host of other Generic companies for Patent Infringement.
No matter how brilliant he was (and he certainly was brilliant) I found Dr. Sherman to be dismissive, rude, and VERY patronizing. Picture a mature Sheldon Cooper, attended by his Amy (Honey). They each had a PhD in Physics from a Blue Ribbon US University; neither was skilled in successfully interacting with more normal people; and, neither had a well developed sense of humour or a good understanding of sarcasm.
Over 30 years ago, I spent a number of months running a Pharmaceutical Research & Analysis lab, where I learned a lot about generics. Suffice it to say that after, while working & could afford it, I insisted on receiving ONLY name-brand drugs. Not to say generics don’t have a place out there (most of my MS medications are, sadly, generics now) but there really is “nothing like the real thing”!
What frustrated me the most at that time, and still does today, were/are the general public’s misconception the only difference between “big pharma” & “generics” was price, with the former being excessively greedy.
What most people don’t understand is that:
1. Patents are very expensive. Thirty
years ago, it was the norm to require a
$10K retainer before even opening a
new patent file, knowing that the
process to obtain this protection could
end up costing well over $100K & take
up to 5-7 years for a final grant; and,
2. Patents provide an opportunity to
dominate a market for a very time-
limited time by granting the holder a
right to sue anyone who infringes what
is covered in the granted patent;
Those are just basic costs for simple inventions! Pharmaceuticals are a whole different situation. Even if successful in getting patents on a novel/new formulation or a new use for a old one, the “drug” has to undergo extensive & exhaustive clinical testing & trials to ensure effectiveness, dosing & safety (read: Government approval) long before it hits the market. Again involving lots of time, personnel, and money. Should you get it to market, you need to price it so it’s development costs over the years can be recovered, along with some of the costs of previous formulas that didn’t make it through. And to continue funding the researchers trying to find the next big miracle drug.
Then you have a Generic show up, demanding to see your formula, which the Government says you must. This upstart then uses your decades of work & regulatory compliance, to cobble together a “cheap copy”, selling to distributors at a fraction of your cost, without contributing in any way to it’s development.
It’s as if your “friend,” who chose not to go to waste his/her time at University, showed up beside you at grad, to grab a degree, & that really plum job you had your eyes on because, s/he can look things up in your notes if necessary.”
LadyJane1313 via Apple Podcasts ·
Canada ·
03/11/23
More reviews of The No Good, Terribly Kind, Wonderful Lives and Tragic Deaths of Barry and Honey Sherman
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“Carey Winter is an inveterate liar and a narcissist who thinks he is owed a living. Apparently cars, houses and travelling the world on someone else’s dime was not enough for him. As well, becoming addicted to hard drugs and making all sorts of poor choices was the fault of everyone but Carey....”Read full review »
éiregirl via Apple Podcasts ·
Canada ·
04/12/23
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“How can this case be boring? Somehow this was accomplished. Avoid.”
N@@90 via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
03/20/23
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