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| Author | Ray Moynihan and Alan Cassels |
|---|---|
| Subject | Unnecessary health care |
| Publisher | Allen & Unwin (Australia); Nation Books (US) |
Publication date | 2005 |
| Publication place | United States |
| Pages | 254 |
| ISBN | 978-1-56025-856-8 |
| OCLC | 60615329 |
Selling Sickness: How the World's Biggest Pharmaceutical Companies are Turning us All into Patients is a 2005 book by Ray Moynihan and Alan Cassels about unnecessary health care.
The work discusses disease mongering. [1] A summary in JAMA described the book as follows:
The book is organized as a series of case studies, each focused on a particular drug. Each chapter explores a different aspect of drug marketing, with evidence drawn from published editorials, news reports, academic journals, and, most interestingly, original interviews with physician-spokespersons and pharmaceutical sales experts. [2]
Jennifer Barrett in Newsweek said that book was an examination of how the drug industry changed public perception of health care issues. [3] A review for the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives said that the authors used "well-honed investigative skills" to "provide solid evidence for their claims". [4] Another reviewer said that the book was a "spirited journalistic exposure of the methods used by the pharmaceutical industry to expand the market for its products" [5] Cal Montgomery in Ragged Edge said that the book was " pitched for general audiences with no special training". [6] The Consumers Health Forum of Australia review said that the book "presented convincing examples that support the idea that growing numbers of people are unnecessarily taking medicines." [7] Judy Segal suggested in Canadian Journal for Studies in Discourse and Writing that the book was "a wonderful resource for teaching rhetoric of science"; she generally praised the journalistic approach, but noted that "one might wonder if the authors are sufficiently even-handed in their reporting". [8]
A Selling Sickness documentary was made as a film companion to the book. Of the film, a reviewer said that "although its critical intent is apparent throughout, it provides a complex account." [9]