EPILOGUE
EPILOGUE
February 2008
“Ms. Carlson, I am a lobbyist in Phoenix. There is a bill
before our legislature that will require pharmaceutical
companies to declare all gifts to doctors. We would like to help
this bill get passed. Would you be willing to speak before the
committee?”
I quickly agreed and plans were made for my
transportation from my friend’s home in Phoenix where I was
visiting. I prepared just as I used to prepare to give seminars,
with notes of important points to make.
“The pharmaceutical lobbyists are coming out of the
woodwork to fight this bill even getting to vote,” Richard
explained as we drove to the Arizona State Capital on a sunny,
warm day. After leaving the car in a public lot, he guided me
into a beautiful building and down a long corridor to the room
assigned to the committee.
“We should be scheduled for ten o’clock,” he said
looking over a posted sheet. But we were not on the schedule
for ten or any other time. “Maybe there was a delay of other
issues,” he said with a frown. He quietly opened the door to the
committee room. There was no one in the room. “This is
strange,” he said. “Wait here and I’ll try to find out what is
going on,” he said turning and walking back to the main lobby.
A few minutes later he returned with an exasperated
expression. “The pharmaceutical lobbyists got to the committee
chairman and had your presentation canceled. They have him
in their pocket. I’m really sorry to have put you to this trouble.”
“You mean the committee chairperson has the power to
decide if the committee will hear from a whistleblower?”
I asked.
238 Diary of a Legal Drug Dealer
“That’s right. That is why it is so easy for the
pharmaceutical industry to maintain control. They financially
support the key people like this chairman,” Richard explained.
“While we are down here I’ll introduce you to some
Representatives who are trying to hear the truth about the
pharmaceutical industry.”
We spent the morning meeting and talking with busy
Representatives. I was grateful for the experience because I had
been unaware of how easy it was for wealthy industries like
pharmaceuticals to control governmental procedures. I became
all the more determined to make this book available to the
public.
