ABSTRACT
This chapter explores some of the tensions that occur when efforts are made to improve the health of the population with the use of medications. The idea of herd immunity is a powerful concept used to coerce populations to vaccinate against infectious diseases. The tensions to which this gives rise are likely to occur more commonly in the future in relation to other medications, as a population health focus with its utilitarian underpinnings and desires for the most efficient use of health care resources becomes more prominent. Foucault’s concept of biopower provides some understanding of a relationship between the state’s claims to care for populations and the simultaneous standardising of bodies through coercive means. Increasing pressure may be placed on those who do not align with population-based interventions, and academics who dissent from orthodox narratives may be vilified. In the case of population-based interventions, powerful vested interests and narratives together facilitate an intense form of pharmaceuticalised governance.
