The obituary of the actor Jack Klugman mentioned the role he saw for his series Quincy, M.E. in addressing social issues. Since it appeared I've been interested to read US reports – including one by Joshua Green on the Washington Post website– recalling how he helped ensure the passing of a piece of critical healthcare legislation, the Orphan Drug Act of 1983.
This aimed at pushing pharmaceutical companies to develop drugs for diseases that don't affect enough people to prove profitable. In 1982, Jack and his writer/producer brother Maurice Klugman wrote two Quincy episodes, the second of which focused on the blocking of the actual bill. In the pivotal scene, Quincy confronts a senator and demands that he look out of the window. Peering down, he sees a huge crowd gathered with signs reading "We Want the Orphan Drug Act" and relents. The show's producers hired 500 extras who really did suffer from rare diseases.
Since then more than 300 orphan drugs have been approved, with 1,100 more under development. Klugman's distant influence continued in the last Congress, which passed an act encouraging paediatric cancer research.