va_str t1_jauwxj7 wrote on March 4, 2023 at 6:43 AM

Reply to comment by watabadidea in US public investment in critical research contributed to the success of mRNA Covid vaccines, and saved millions of lives by geoxol

One of those decisions being risk-aversity and subsidizing most of their research, yes.

watabadidea t1_javevpd wrote on March 4, 2023 at 10:52 AM

There are lots of ways to avoid risk, lots of different levels of risk aversion, and lots of potential government subsidies to apply for. How do companies decide on how best to avoid risk, what a proper level of risk aversion/risk acceptance is prudent, and what specific subsidies to target/apply for?

Those are really tough questions and the answer is a complete mystery. Of course, I do seem to recall an interview one time with a Big Pharma exec where he said "None of our decisions in these areas have anything to do with profit motivation. Lord knows we don't operate in a trillion dollar, for-profit industry because we want to make money."

So, at the very least, we know it's not that, right?

va_str t1_javhqo7 wrote on March 4, 2023 at 11:31 AM

You're really making my point for me. There are indeed plenty of options, and the profit motive motivates choices towards greater profits, not the greater good.