A dignidade humana e a liberdade econômica: as externalidades da indústria farmacêutica e as políticas públicas

Abstract

The Dissertation is part of the research area "Socio-Economic Relations" in their "ethical and legal aspects" of the Postgraduate Program in Law, International Relations and Development at the Catholic University of Goiás and from the human dignity perspective, analyzes the externalities - social cost of the pharmaceutical industrial activity in it´s exercise of economic freedom. It starts with the assumption that the history of ideas through its different stages culminated in the emptying of transcendent values, leaving just the market related ones. The lack of values, coupled with the economic and demographic scenario, causes externalities such as increasing the price of drugs, reducing the quality of products and the precariousness of meeting the needs of the elderly population. It is premised, however, that industrial activity is necessary to ensure innovation and development of new medicines, which justifies state interference in the market, to ensure the public interest. State intervention in the market would be guided by human dignity as the foundation of the Democratic State of Brazil. It happens that, as a concept under construction, human dignity lacks objectivity. Based on this, Barroso proposes the following elements of human dignity: the intrinsic value of individual, autonomy and community value. From this, explores some externalities relative to the price and quality of drugs in the world, in Brazil and in regional perspective (State of Goiás) caused by pharmaceutical corporate decisions taken on the full enjoyment of economic freedom. It is concluded that to address externalities and the needs of the elderly population without compromising own industrial activity (unintended consequence) the state should intervene in the market through public policies, especially in the Research, Development and Innovation (R&D). The methodology used to demonstrate this was the literature on the subject and its correlation with the data collected on price and quality of drugs. It uses the deductive-comparative methodology based on historical and ethical analysis to analyze the data collected. Cases or examples chosen for analysis were taken from the media in general, official publications, academic papers, internet and others, and serve the purpose of exposing the required state intervention in the market on behalf of human dignity, especially in Research, Development and Innovation (R&D).