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Letters and Blogs
(China Daily)
Updated: 2009-05-15 07:43 Public pressure can help lower flu antidote price Comments on the article, "What should be the price of flu antidote?" (China Daily, May 5) The price of flu antidotes can be lowered in several ways. The government can cancel the patent of the drugs. Or, public demand can force the pharmaceutical companies to reduce the price. It is difficult to deal with the issue only through administrative measures. On the contrary, it makes sense for the public to request big-time producers of the flu antidotes to cut the price to a reasonable level. People all over the country donated to help the survivors of the Sichuan earthquake last year. The media used to issue and update the donation lists everyday. It became some sort of a competition among the media to highlight the names of the donors, prompting more companies and celebrities, eager to maintain their public image and exhibit their patriotism, to donate generously. Though many people have disputed the genuineness of the "donation lists," the donations nevertheless helped a lot of survivors even if some of them were made under public pressure. The donations show that the power of the people cannot be ignored. Perhaps a public request to lower the flu antidote price to a reasonable level could work too. With the help of the media, we may be able to arouse the sense of social responsibility among the drug manufacturers. Liang Peng Via e-mail Learning from failures for a better future Compared with some Western countries, China seems to be better prepared to prevent an H1N1 flu outbreak. The virus has not been as widespread in China as it is in Mexico or the US for two reasons. First, the countries that have reported the maximum number of cases are geographically very far from China. Second and perhaps more crucial is the fact that China has gathered a lot of experience on prevention of epidemics, especially after the SARS outbreak in 2003. That makes our government respond quickly to any epidemic threat. China has learned a lot from the earlier international financial crises. I think that's one of main reasons why China has survived the economic turbulence without much injury. Learning from failures can make China improve its response to crises. I strongly believe that China will eventually become a very competitive country provided we learn from the past. I am optimistic that China will soon conquer H1N1 flu, too. Bao Lei Via e-mail Readers' comments are welcome. Please send mail to Letters to the Editor, China Daily, 15 Huixin Dongjie, Chaoyang District, Beijing, 100029 China. Send faxes to (86-10) 6491-8377. Send e-mail to opinion@chinadaily.com.cn or letters@chinadaily.com.cn or to the individual columnists. China Daily reserves the right to edit all letters. Thank you. (China Daily 05/15/2009 page9)
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