Tis the Season for Santa and Pharma!

Case story #54 on the Pharmaceuticalization of America

Seemed like an innocent offer - a free sit on Santa's lap, and my little girl's first time to see the big ole' jolly man. But my jolliness turned to gloom as I signed in, and saw what the church had chosen for their writing utensils. I looked around to see if there were boxes of free samples, maybe an attractive drug rep posing as one of "santa's helpers" but it was just the pens. Next year, maybe there will be a more elaborate set-up...maybe while you are sitting on Santa's lap, instead of asking him for gifts, he will be giving the little ones a quick questionare to see if they meet criteria for ADHD (i.e. "Have you ever been in a hyperactive state for 3 seconds or longer?") or Dependent Personality Syndrome (i.e. "Do you depend on your mother to feed you?"). And I am sure that on Santa's lap, Happiness Syndrome would be quite prevalent, indicating a dire need for strong medicine, immediately!

Big PhRMA, coming to a Santa's lap near you!