Dilyana Gaytandzhieva

American pharmaceutical giant Gilead has paid at least $178 million to doctors and $81 million to hospitals in the US to promote and prescribe the company’s drugs despite cases of deaths and severe side effects. The drug-maker funded as many as 21,833 physicians in 2019 alone, according to data about Gilead payments from 2013 to 2019.

Deaths of patients in treatment with the Gilead hepatitis C antiviral Harvoni have been reported in the US, Canada, and Portugal, according to data obtained from the US Federal Drug Administration (FDA).

Despite the severe side effects from these Gilead hepatitis C antivirals the pharmaceutical company has listed none of them so that patients can make their informed decision.

Instead, Gilead has paid kickbacks to doctors to prescribe these drugs without patients being informed about the possible risks.