ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the case study of Johnson & Johnson. It is the oldest and largest American pharmaceutical company and was founded in 1886. Johnson & Johnson is a holding company that has more than 260 operating companies conducting business in virtually every country in the world. The company’s focus is on products related to health and human well-being. The company is organized into three business segments: consumer, pharmaceutical, and medical devices. Presenting ever increasing revenues, the sector that has been increasing the most is the pharmaceutical segment. It has a wide range of medicines that are produced and sold all over the world. For instance, in the area of oncology, the medicine called Imbruvica went from a revenue of US$ 689 million in 2015 to US$ 1,893 billion in 2017, a growth of almost 300% in two years. Although we do not have more data on the health field to make a direct link between financialization and drug consumption, the fact is that the increase in the volume, prices, and variety of medicines in the world today is also a phenomenon concomitant to that of financialization, rising profits, and maximizing shareholder value.
