Drug testing from prisoners to poor people

 

Until the 1970s, 90 percent of pharmaceutical drugs in the United States were tested for safety in inmates before reaching the market. The documentary 'Bodies for Rent' highlights how drug trials put the health of the subjects at risk.

Using vulnerable people for medical research is nothing new, experts say. All kinds of drugs were tried on prisoners in Canada and the United States. Everything can be monitored and controlled while being tested on prisoners. Their diet, exercise and sleep can all be monitored, says University of Minnesota bioethicist Carl Elliott.

But protests against the experimentation on prisoners began to grow stronger. As a result of the public outcry, federal regulations in the 1970s made drug testing in prisons more difficult. Gradually, drug experiments on prisoners almost stopped. But another group was found for the experiments. Later experiments were conducted on poor people. Elliott mentioned companies that offer money to healthy volunteers who agree to be tested. Experts make the shocking revelation that drugs are now being tested on oppressed people living on the fringes of society. Experts accuse the companies of exploiting those who agree to be tested if offered a pittance for survival.