Who Paid Merck’s Fines?

Are you aware that the United States Department of Justice reported that punitive actions were taken against Merck because they violated federal and state water pollution control regulations in 2006? This is a really BIG DEAL that I think most of us missed.

It seems that Merck regularly dumped waste chemicals into the river from their plant outside Philadelphia. "Merck’s actions led to an extensive fish-kill and caused the Philadelphia Water Department to temporarily shut down its drinking water operations," said Acting Assistant Attorney General Tenpas.

If you have the idea that it probably wasn't much, consider the actions taken against Merck for their "spill".

• pay $10 million to put into place systems that will prevent future dangerous discharges at their facility
• spend approximately $9 million for extensive environmental projects
• pay $1,575,000 in penalties and civil damages for past violations

In addition, Merck will contribute $4.5 million toward the purchase of a parcel of land adjacent to the creek that will have restricted use and open space easements in perpetuity. The potential for harm from these spills is so dangerous that the land that is set aside can NEVER be used for anything else.

Merck's fine is approximately $25 million (a pittance compared to the tens of billions of dollars they make each year). I'd consider it fair price to pay for the action if I thought that Merck would actually pay even one penny of that amount. Sure, the company might write checks for the penalties, but who actually pays? I'm certain that no Merck official or employee had to dig into their own pocket to cover the costs - even though some individuals made the decision to open the valves and dump the waste. That burden falls on anyone who purchases any product made by Merck. The company makes Zocor, Mevacor, Vasotec, Cozaar Prinivil, Pepcid, Fosamax, Crixivan, Singulair, Propecia, Vioxx, and the "cancer vaccine", Gardasil. Recognize any of those names?

You might think that I'm going to say that people who use those drugs are actually paying Merck's latest fines. But, the problem runs deeper. People who use those drugs aren't the only ones paying. What about insurance payments and government payments (Medicare/Medicaid)". Those dollars are collected from all of us through insurance premiums and taxes. In the end, the fines were paid by all of us.

PONDER THIS...

It is fairly common to hear about these kinds of fines or how BIG BUSINESS ought to pay more taxes. Many of us even feel a kind of justified righteousness about it. After all, THEY have all that money and it's about time we held them responsible and made them pay. It is very important, though, to take a breath and think about it for awhile. The people who run companies receive every single cent of their money from the sale of their products - all of it. When they want or need more money they can get it by selling more products, raising prices, or reducing costs. In every situation, the dollars funnel from their customers into their coffers. That's the way businesses work. The business itself never pays anything, not even taxes. It's all a shell game with money.

This is something to ponder well whenever we're faced with the opportunity to pound our chests in victory when a big company "pays their due". They pay it with the money their customers give them in return for the products they sell. Perhaps if they weren't so free with the money they wouldn't have to charge so much for their products. If every business acted in that way even the costs of raw materials would be less. That would help all of us. As long as people are happy viewing the situation as "us vs. them" the costs to US will always increase every time we make THEM pay.

Here's a link to the press release from the Department of Justice http://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/2007/December/07_enrd_1000.html