Philosophy 6: Ethical Issues in Business Midterm Essay
Chase Novak
Dr. Parker
Need or Greed?
New Protocol: How Drug’s Rebirth as Treatment for Cancer Fueled Price Rises
Immanuel Kant-Kantian Deontology
John Locke- The Justification of Private Property
Adam Smith-Benefits of the Profit Motive
Milton Friedman- The Social Responsibility of Business Is to Increase Its Profits
Thesis: An examination of the case study New Protocol: How Drug’s Rebirth as Treatment for Cancer Fueled Price Rises relies heavily on a keen understanding of the social and economic implications of a capitalist system, and once taken into account it is clear that Celgene Corp. is justified in raising prices based on the business market philosophies asserted by
Celgene was losing money until 2002, which obviously necessitated an increase in price (Donaldson, 153). Jackson’s move to incrementally increase the price of thalidomide was not unethical because he has an obligation to stockholders to deliver a profit. Furthermore, Friedman asserts that it is not the corporate executive’s job to act as a moral entrepreneur as he is ill fit to do so. Friedman stresses that calls for executives to act “socially responsible” are unethical as socially impactful decisions, such as price adjustment, must be left up to publically elected officials with knowledge of the social and economic implications of such actions (Donaldson, 36). Friedman makes a vital point as it explains that the social responsibility falls on the public and its publically elected officials to enforce social justices through legislature. Therefore if the public desired Celgene to lower prices of thalidomide then it must require it to do so through law. Furthermore since no law exists requiring Celgene to sell thalidomide at a certain price, then Celgene is perfectly ethical and justified in raising its prices. If executives like Johnson adjusted prices according to their personal beliefs then huge portions of society would be heavily affected by such decisions and thus the public should reserve the right to solve such social dilemmas through democratic means in the form of law.
Emanuel Kant’s philosophy of the