The incentives in the USA's system of campaign finance are well-aligned with the interests of the for-profit pharmaceutical industry and poorly aligned with public health.  Pleas for individual virtue and courage by politicians are welcome, but insufficient. The current composition of the U.S. Supreme Court would appear to make immediate reform in this area unlikely. But in the long term, reinstating restrictions on corporate donations to political campaigns would help prevent the regulatory capture that augments risk of epidemics to addictive pharmaceutical products.