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The #MeToo movement is disruptive in other industries. But what happens to an image when it suddenly goes upside down?
President Trump meets with Rep. K. Michael Conaway (R-TX) and Dr. Gregg Seaman at the 2018 Health Care Summit in the Lincoln Bedroom at the White House on Jan. 9, 2018.
Two law professors in Tampa, Florida, Dr. William Knott and Dr. Samantha Tetteman, analyzed publicly available data on the study of drug prices and found that:
Only 7 percent of the reported cases of price hikes involved FDA-approved drugs in the most recent season (with existing prescriptions), and that in over half the cases (52 percent), prices were actually falling.
Of the those Price Increases that did occur, over half (55%) caused a bigger increase in price than the previous year, despite the identical increased size of the previous year’s supply of the drug.
The second study was published in January in the American Journal of Public Health. It compared the price increases across the twelve largest US cities’ alcohol market, comparing them against price increases in five high-income countries. The researchers found that per capita alcohol consumption has declined in all five countries, except the U.S.
Though the cocaine, heroin, and amphetamine markets have declined, and small amounts of prescription medicine have emerged as alternatives, the interest remains. The DEA just approved the first prescription drug to treat addiction to opioids to be marketed in this way.
A funny thing happened when a con man changed his story, became a politician, and got re-elected.
The populist rhetoric and socialist policies we saw during the Sanders campaign were replaced with words and promises that sound familiar. In recent days, Vice President Mike Pence has said that the proposed 2025 tax cut will “substantially” increase the deficit. The economy, particularly low interest rates, could create a windfall for the government, as the Associated Press has reported that the administration believes it will soon reach its fiscal limit.
Vice President Pence also issued a vague threat to Michigan and other states in the Rust Belt which supply a large share of the country’s steel and aluminum, as he warned that if Michigan builds any more coal plants, he may order their demolition.
Liberal pundit David Frum says that the false inflation statistics being used by the media will undermine confidence in the market.
IBD’S monthly stock report on Monday, February 4 shows that the charts are less than healthy. On the indexes, 11 of 21 are under major market breadth support. On Monday, the S&P, Dow, Nasdaq, and Russell 2000 will be closed for President’s Day. The market has been weaker since late January but the markets appear to be resuming their September to November downtrend.
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