On Demand
Drug Money
Monday, January 05, 2009
Fred Mogul, WNYC reporter, reports on people participating in drug trials for the cash.
In a Recession, Getting Paid to be a Guinea Pig Gains Appeal
- About the Brian Lehrer Show »
- Staff Bios »
- Contact UsĀ »
- Tapes and Transcripts »
- Latest Episode »
- Show Archive »
Features & Series
Podcast
Stay up to date.
Subscribe to the Podcast
YOU PRODUCE The Brian Lehrer Show
Be a listener-producer with facts, questions and people you'd like to hear on the air.
More
The Brian Lehrer Show Scrapbook
Visit the scrapbook for daily photos and miscellany from The Brian Lehrer Show.
More
Shop at Amazon!
The Brian Lehrer Show picks
Start your Amazon shopping on WNYC.org and a portion of your total purchase goes to WNYC.
More

Comments
Refresh
With the recent state of the economy, which we are all beginning to feel, people are willing to do things they may not have considered before. I personally would consider testing out a new drug for the right price!
Trish
Mount Kisco
21,
Full Time Student/Full Time Branch Assistant at an Investment Firm
Straining to understand the "now that people have lost their jobs" angle... I wouldn't want unemployed school children having this option...
...and, don't people have the right to do whatever they want to their bodies short of causing immediate death? If someone else is willing to test drugs I'm willing to let them.
PS -- some of the most famous drug testers did it for free. Timothy Leary comes to mind.
My girlfriend did egg donation twice for money
I took part in a trial outside London, UK. It was a glaxosmithkline sleep aid for people trying to sleep in noisy environments. I had to spend 2 nights, 3 days a week for a month in a sleep lab. I got the trial drug, a placebo and 2 doses of a drug on the market. They fed us and let us watch tv, play risk, do puzzles and read etc. The other people taking part were students and immigrants. We had to sleep listening to traffic noises but aside from that it was a great way to make money and I used to money to travel to Asia. I got paid $4200 USD and still had time to work an internship. I looked into doing one in the US but the trials here pay peanuts compared to the ones abroad.
If this is a discussion about the medical industry "exploiting" peoples' need for money, the 800 pound gorilla of course is donating blood.
I'd wager that at least a percentage of college costs in this country are paid this way.
Of course, I've noticed an even more shocking way that cash-strapped people have been scraping together cash these days -- working at sucky jobs!
Are there any marijuana testing trails going on in town. I'd be down for that.
Leave a Comment
Please stay on topic, be civil, and be brief.
Back to EpisodeEmail addresses are never displayed, but they are required to confirm your comments. Names are displayed with all comments. WNYC reserves the right to edit any comments posted on this site. Please read the WNYC.org Comment Guidelines before posting.