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This can’t be a good sign.
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the world’s largest private philanthropy fund, sold off almost all of its pharmaceutical, biotechnology and health-care investments in the quarter ended June 30, according to a regulatory filing published Friday.
The Seattle-based charity endowment, set up by Microsoft Corp. founder Bill Gates and his wife, sold its total holding of 2.5 million shares in health-care giant Johnson & Johnson in the quarter, according to the filing.
The foundation also sold millions of shares in major drug makers, including 14.9 million shares in Schering-Plough Corp., almost 1 million shares in Eli Lilly & Co., 8.1 million shares in Merck & Co. and 3.7 million shares in Wyeth, over the same time period. The foundation no longer holds shares in any of those companies.
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The foundation’s decision to drastically reduce its exposure to health-related stocks is striking, as many of its charity grants have been disbursed to address developing country health issues. Its move comes against the background of anxiety among drugmakers and healthcare insurance firms about the potential impact of the Obama administration’s proposed overhaul of the U.S. healthcare system, which could put pressure on prescription drug prices.
The market hates uncertainty…perhaps there’s no mystery here…as one wag put it:
“Sell or short pharma and healthcare stocks because they will be in the cross hairs of Congress and Obama.
Then if the health care bill fails, buy back in.
No mystery here.”
If they are unloading other stock as well…different story.
Maybe they figure Baxter’s Swine Flu vaccine is going to depopulate the planet anyway so why bother with saving people.
I expect the WSJ to shed a tear for Pharma and HealthCorp share prices.
As someone who works for a living? Frack ‘em all – and the slipper-sniffers who worry about ‘em.
Seems premature that Gates would reason that drug price gouging will go away any time soon.
The ginormous drug industry with the help of their GOP proxies has managed to drown debate.
The strategy of hired mob shouting, violence and fear mongering with death panels has been quite effective.
I don’t see healthcare reform in this country anytime soon. The drug industry is likely to milk this industry for a LONG time.
Why in the hell can’t be a good sign???
Maybe the rape and pillaging of the public’s money, by the criminal pharmaceutical mafia, is finally coming to an end.
#4 You’re naivete has no bounds. You make the Kennedy’s seem as just poor people with no connections & no money grabbing schemes. No Demagogue is involved in price gauging and lobbying.
Newsflash! We’re not as stupid as you’re
I only wish Obama could pass an OVERHAUL: which would be single payer, universal coverage, death panels, abortion on demand, health/prevention oriented. Just to begin with.
Bias: reporting mere frittering at the edge as some kind of overhaul.
Ftipppzzz!!!
If you had billions to “make the world a better place” how could that best be done?
Making people more healthy seems like mostly a waste of money to me. So more will survive so they can die in a war or of starvation later?
Seems to me basic research/development of renewable ENERGY would be the ticket and let THAT trickle down to all the other areas that could use improvement.
Or, education so the tyranny of religion and tribalism and nationalism could be lifted?
But not healthcare.
If the greediest people in the world are bailing out of the health care business because they’re afraid the insane profits are about to revert to normal, everyday-type-business profits, that’s a good sign for everyone else, isn’t it?
OBama should invest in real solutions
I want Hemp food, clothing shelter, energy, jobs
It is an organic crop and does not need pesticides or herbicides to grow.
Once we get our hemp right there will be less sick.
America will once again be a lean healthy society.
The minerals and nutrients that are present in Hemp food will provide amazing health benefits. Everyone who has a clue knows what I am saying. Before we sign away more trillions lets start raking in the billions from the ultimate crop that can grow in most of the U.S.
Acai Berries are a super food but they grow in the amazon. Soy contains Estrogen, Flax contains it as well.
Dear Feds let us put our money where our mouths are. Let us eat our ways to health.
#10 I have trouble finding the least bit of relevance between your post and the article. Just saying.
It’s a mistake to think drug company prices will go down. They are spending $150 million to sell ObamaCare, so clearly they are making money off of it.
Where’s the foundation called “Provide Clean Water and Enough Food To Every Human Being On The Planet In Order To Provide The Foundation of Health Health Foundation”?
All of these other foundations are ego driven money laundering schemes where they keep the cycle of funding appearing back into their own portfolios as they decide where to allocate funding that makes them the most money.
#6′s personal attack of #4 is painful to read. So your educated response is to call #4 naive, invoke the Kennedys, and then claim “we” are not as “stupid” as #4 is?
Who is this “we”? Why don’t you present an argument based on critical thought? What #4 said is so innocuous it must have really got to you (why would it get to you so if there is no truth to it?)
whichever “we” #6 is referring to, I am not part of it.
#14 What, respond to your sound arguments? Yeah, you convinced me, there are no rich Demagogues (specially in Holywood) with a lot of lobbying power (caugh Boston Group cough). And I call the poster naive in order not to call it shill.
And please don’t use the tired “wignut” adjective whenever anybody oust the lying Demagouges. When you point others faults, make sure thate your beard is wet enough.
Thank heavens that we don’t rely upon the pharmaceutical, biotech, and healthcare industries for innovation.
We can look to union research labs for the next vaccine or drug breakthrough.
#15 if you are going to be a troll, do it with some style. Is demagogue your favorite word?
Oh, and I am in awe at your dexterity at using spell check.
Maybe they are getting out to avoid a conflict of interest, in case they want to directly fund vaccines, etc.
So painful, its funny.
#14–nom==correctly criticizes Pedro for making ad hominem.
Then after a completely appropriate respond from Pedro ((except, I can only guess at what a “wet beard” means==not standard imagery yet, but I love the creative use of language)) you flip into robust ad hominem yourself at #17.
What I’d like to see is more foundational elements in a post. Kennedy is “known” for being “Mr Healthcae for the people.” Pedro posts as if he is Mr Insider for Drug Profits.
No body interesting cares about the give and take of a bustling interchange==but information is critical.
Is Kennedy a drug dupe or not?
#18. that makes sense to me. They’re obviously not doing it for the money.