The Most Loathed Industry in the US

Big Pharma has a terrible reputation that it has worked hard to earn

The opioid crisis and endless drug controversies have left the pharmaceutical industry with a ghastly reputation. Hasty Words/Pixabay

Every year, Gallup surveys Americans about their attitudes toward 25 industries. Ranking in the lowest position as the most-loathed industry is the pharmaceutical industry, which got so many bad rankings that it has a score of -31. For comparison, the top-rated sector, the restaurant industry, has a net positive score of +58.

The survey involved 1,525 adults, who were asked to choose their overall view of 25 industries, using the rankings very positive, somewhat positive, neutral, somewhat negative or very negative. Overall, 58 percent of Americans ranked the pharmaceutical industry negatively, more than double the amount that ranked it positively (27 percent).

Pharma’s Lowest Rating Since 2001

The pharmaceutical industry’s -31 score is the lowest for the sector since Gallup’s “Americans’ Views of U.S. Business Industry Sectors” survey began in 2001. Only a few other industries have received such negative ratings over the survey’s nearly two-decade run, including the federal government, oil and gas, real estate and automobile industries.