The Daily Show: Ears Edition
Episode: TDS Time Machine | Big Pharma
Host: Trevor Noah
Date: November 16, 2025
Overview
This episode explores the ongoing controversies around Big Pharma, skewering the exorbitant prices of prescription drugs, the opioid epidemic, corporate accountability, and systemic corruption. With a blend of comedic takes and sharp interviews, particularly with entrepreneur Mark Cuban, the show satirizes the broken healthcare and pharmaceutical systems, their cozy relationship with government, and the human cost of corruption. The show also covers the celebrity-fueled Ozempic craze, regulatory failures, and political grandstanding over drug policy.
Key Discussion Points and Insights
1. America’s Broken Pharmaceutical System
- Government Subsidies vs. High Prices
- Trevor Noah launches into the episode dissecting how pharmaceutical companies receive generous taxpayer subsidies—tax breaks, research grants, and patent extensions—yet reciprocate with the highest drug prices in the Western Hemisphere.
"[Pharmaceutical companies] get everything from our government... and what do we the people get for it? The highest drug prices in the western hemisphere and for some reason the possibility of an infection in our perineum." — Trevor Noah (01:17)
- The show mocks the government’s “victories,” such as negotiating the prices of just 10 drugs, as laughably inadequate.
"The companies we subsidize with billions of dollars are allowing us the privilege to negotiate the price of 10 of their drugs. And 10 is all of them, right?" — Trevor Noah (02:28)
- Trevor Noah launches into the episode dissecting how pharmaceutical companies receive generous taxpayer subsidies—tax breaks, research grants, and patent extensions—yet reciprocate with the highest drug prices in the Western Hemisphere.
2. The Opioid Crisis: Accountability and Settlements
- Corporate Settlements Without True Consequences
- Michael Che reports on settlements involving Purdue Pharma and the Sackler family, as well as Johnson & Johnson, over their roles in the opioid crisis.
"They misled sick people about how addictive their drugs were... they made billions... now they just get to be like, uh, how about we give you some of that money back and we call it even? I think it’s bullshit." — Michael Che (04:11)
- The Sacklers’ testimony is mocked for evasiveness regarding their profits, exposing corporate efforts to avoid accountability:
Michael Che: "Do you know if it's over $10 billion?"
Dr. Richard Sackler (via Trevor Noah): "I don't think so."
Michael Che: "But fair to say it's over a billion dollars?"
Dr. Sackler: "It would be fair to say that, yes." (05:18–05:35) - Johnson & Johnson's stock actually rose after a huge fine, suggesting courts’ punishments remain an insufficient deterrent.
"Johnson & Johnson's stock actually went up after they were fined $572 million because they expected the punishment to be much worse." — Michael Che (06:32)
- The hypocrisy in criminal justice: Felicity Huffman faced jail time for college cheating, while pharma executives walk.
"Prosecutors want Felicity Huffman to go to jail for cheating in a college admissions scandal... But the people responsible for thousands of American deaths get to walk away with a slap on the wrist." — Michael Che (07:03)
- Michael Che reports on settlements involving Purdue Pharma and the Sackler family, as well as Johnson & Johnson, over their roles in the opioid crisis.
3. Comparing Pharma to Drug Cartels
- Comedic Investigation Skit:
- Michael Che and a guest comedian satirize the blurred line between legal pharmaceutical companies and drug cartels.
"Pharmaceutical companies are like drug cartels." — Michael Che (10:36)
"This medicine kills people. Do you still think it's a joke?" — Michael Che (10:50)
- Michael Che and a guest comedian satirize the blurred line between legal pharmaceutical companies and drug cartels.
- Whistleblower Perspectives
- Former pharma sales rep Dr. John Verapan and medical researcher Peter Goetche describe the corrupting influence of pharma money on regulators and researchers.
"They can buy anyone they want. The FDA, the government, the researchers. They get payoffs." — Dr. John Verapan (11:33)
- Former pharma sales rep Dr. John Verapan and medical researcher Peter Goetche describe the corrupting influence of pharma money on regulators and researchers.
4. Mark Cuban Interview: Disrupting Drug Pricing
- Transparent Pricing at Cost Plus Drug Company
- Mark Cuban shares how his company, costplusdrugs.com, exposes drug price markups and undercuts traditional pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) by offering transparent, low pricing on generics:
"Prior to us, there was no transparency whatsoever... The one missing piece: transparency." — Mark Cuban (16:54)
"There are drugs... $2,000 at a big pharmacy, at costplusdrugs.com it's under $30." — Mark Cuban (17:43) - Outlines how the market is rigged by secretive PBMs, driving up costs and stifling competition:
"PBMs... are dictating prices left and right. They're basically stealing money from employers and employees." — Mark Cuban (17:05)
"If we publish our price, boom, the whole world's going to change." — Mark Cuban (19:07) - Explains pushback from established industry players and how his approach forces greater competition and consumer empowerment.
- Mark Cuban shares how his company, costplusdrugs.com, exposes drug price markups and undercuts traditional pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) by offering transparent, low pricing on generics:
- The Need for Broader Reform
- Cuban and Trevor Noah discuss how the healthcare system fails as a “free market” and the entrenched power of insurance giants (“the Bukas”):
"We have a privatized health care system and it’s the best in the world, but very clearly it doesn’t function like a free market." — Trevor Noah (21:18) "There’s no reason for the big [PBMs] that control 90% of the prescriptions that are filled... to exist." — Mark Cuban (22:29)
- Cuban and Trevor Noah discuss how the healthcare system fails as a “free market” and the entrenched power of insurance giants (“the Bukas”):
5. The Ozempic Weight Loss Craze
- Satirical Take on Off-Label Use and Shortages
- The panel lampoons the surge in celebrity Ozempic use for weight loss, which causes shortages for diabetics for whom it was designed:
"Come on. Stop stealing medication from diabetes patients. If you want to lose weight, just do a juice cleanse and spend the next three days on the toilet like a normal person." — Michael Che (24:13)
- Skits imitate pharma ads warning of the absurdity of the current situation.
"Ozempic's sleek pen can be hidden inside your rectum, preventing theft." — Trevor Noah (as announcer, 25:05)
- The panel lampoons the surge in celebrity Ozempic use for weight loss, which causes shortages for diabetics for whom it was designed:
6. Politicians Tackle the Opioid Crisis: Trump’s Empty Promises
- Political Response and Satire
- The show highlights how the crisis becomes political theater, as presidents make big promises but propose ineffective or even damaging solutions (e.g., Trump floating the death penalty for dealers).
"He may know how to act presidential, but underneath it all, he's still Trump." — Michael Che (27:41)
- Ad campaigns and anti-drug PSAs are lampooned, with evidence cited that such ads are counterproductive for youth.
"Drug commercials might make teens more likely to use drugs. Because when you tell a teenager something is dangerous, it just makes them want to do it more." — Michael Che (32:08–32:19)
- The show highlights how the crisis becomes political theater, as presidents make big promises but propose ineffective or even damaging solutions (e.g., Trump floating the death penalty for dealers).
Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments (with Timestamps)
-
On government subsidies and poor returns:
"The money our free market-ish system uses to prop up corporate profit at the expense of the taxpayer."
— Trevor Noah (01:17) -
On settlements for the opioid crisis:
"They made billions... now they just get to be like, ‘How about we give you some of that money back and we call it even?’ I think it’s bullshit."
— Michael Che (04:11) -
On execs dodging responsibility (the Sackler Hearing):
"This guy’s gonna act like he doesn’t know if he made a billion dollars. Get the out of here, man."
— Michael Che (05:37) -
On Johnson & Johnson’s stock rising after being fined:
"Johnson & Johnson’s stock actually went up after they were fined $572 million because they expected the punishment to be much worse."
— Michael Che (06:32) -
On pharma being like drug cartels:
"Pharmaceutical companies are like drug cartels."
— Michael Che (10:36) -
On Cost Plus Drugs transparency:
"When you go to costplusdrugs.com... first thing we do is we show you our cost, then we show you our markup, which is always 15%."
— Mark Cuban (17:24) -
On broken market mechanics:
"If this dude [Martin Shkreli] can just jack up the price, it is not an efficient market. That means nobody knows what the real cost is."
— Mark Cuban (19:07) -
On anti-drug PSAs backfiring:
"According to a study... ad campaigns were unlikely to have favorable effects on youths. Even more, watching more commercials actually predicted teens would be more inclined to use drugs."
— Announcer (31:41–32:08) -
On solving the opioid crisis via political soundbites:
"President Trump has revealed his long awaited plan to... among the tougher measures proposed, proposed giving drug traffickers the death penalty."
— Announcer (28:16) "America has spent a lot of money on these ad campaigns before...the National Institutes of Health say it may have done the opposite."
— Announcer (31:45)
Essential Timestamps
- 01:17 — Systemic subsidies and high drug prices
- 03:31 — Opioid crisis settlements and Sackler testimony
- 06:24 — Johnson & Johnson fined, stock market reaction
- 10:36 — Comparing pharma companies to drug cartels
- 15:13 — Mark Cuban interview: drug pricing disruption
- 17:43 — Real-world price reductions by Cost Plus Drugs
- 21:18 — Free market myth in American healthcare
- 24:13 — Ozempic and drug shortages for diabetics
- 32:08 — Ineffectiveness of anti-drug ad campaigns
Tone and Style
- The episode maintains The Daily Show's signature blend of irreverent satire and incisive critique, balancing harsh truths about the pharmaceutical industry with humor and parody.
- Mark Cuban brings a pragmatic, reform-minded entrepreneur’s angle, furthering the call for systemic transparency and challenging entrenched middlemen in the industry.
- The panel and field segments use comedic sketches to drive home their points, making complex topics accessible and engaging for listeners.
Takeaway:
Big Pharma’s influence, facilitated by government complacency and opaque financial middlemen, continues to harm American consumers. Genuine reform, anchored in transparency and disruptive innovation, is urgently needed—a challenge highlighted by both comedic investigation and real-world entrepreneurial efforts showcased by Mark Cuban.