Submitted by Sheldon Rampton on
The New York Times ran an op-ed piece written by six-time Olympic track and field medal winner Jackie Joyner-Kersee about her struggle with asthma. The paper failed to note that Joyner-Kersee is part of an "asthma education program" program supported by GlaxoSmithKline, which makes an inhalation aerosol for asthma.
Submitted by John Stauber on
Remember the PR hype and spin about how socially responsible and proactive 3M corporation was in pulling Scotchgard from the market last year? Well, check this out: "New analyses of 3M's own data, some decades old, reveals that the company knew far more, far earlier, about potential health problems from Scotchgard exposure. The (Scotchgard) story is likely to emerge as one of the apocryphal examples of 20th century experimentation with widespread chemical exposures without adequate testing."
Submitted by John Stauber on
The tobacco, booze and food industry lobbyists at Rick Berman's Guest Choice Network usually castigate Michael Jacobson's Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) as the dreaded "food police" when it comes to fat and sugar in the diet. But they are loving CSPI's promotion of genetically engineered food.
Submitted by Sheldon Rampton on
After Children's Memorial Hospital, a private hospital in Chicago, refused to treat 11-year-old Ana Esparza because she was uninsured and could not afford a life-saving liver transplant, Miami's Jackson Memorial Hospital agreed to do the surgery for only $225,000 -- discounted from the normal $500,000 cost of the procedure.
Submitted by Sheldon Rampton on
Editors at the world's most prominent medical journals, alarmed that drug companies are exercising too much control over research results, have agreed to adopt a uniform policy that reserves the right to refuse to publish drug company-sponsored studies unless the researchers involved are guaranteed scientific independence. The journal editors decided to act after several recent cases involving charges that drug companies tried to withhold research results or present them in the most favorable way.
Submitted by Laura Miller on
"It was 2:05 a.m. when an ambulance brought Mr. Jacobs and his daughter to Sarasota Memorial Hospital's emergency room," stated a news release from Sarasota Memorial Hospital. "Mr. Jacobs was complaining of difficulty breathing. He was 65 years old, overweight and on medication for high blood pressure.
Submitted by Laura Miller on
The Washingon Post reported NY-based PR firm Cohn & Wolfe's campaign for Glaxo SmithKline to promote its drug Paxil as a treatment for social anxiety disorder has raised concerns. The campaign calls into question whether pharmaceutical companies, traditionally in the business of finding new drugs for existing disorders, are increasingly in the business of seeking new disorders for existing drugs.
Submitted by Laura Miller on
Minnesota's largest health care system Allina Health System has been under the close scrutiny of the Minnesota attorney general. At issue is whether Allina improperly spent money on outside consultants and executive perks. According to the Minneapolis Star Tribune, Allina spent over $300,000 this spring on "crisis management" consultants.
Submitted by Laura Miller on
The Wall Street Journal reports that the Environmental Protection Agency sent a letter to Florida optometrist Keith Finger warning him to not eat StarLink genetically modified corn during his presentation at a hearing on the matter. The agency said it couldn't "be responsible for ensuring your safety," citing concern that Dr. Finger might have an allergic reaction to something other than StarLink. Last month the EPA declared that StarLink corn didn't cause allergic reactions in test subjects.
Submitted by Laura Miller on
A Harris Interactive/BBK Healthcare Poll showed that more Americans are considering clinical research studies as treatment options and they want more education about the federal and international measures designed to protect them. According to a press release on "The Will & Why Survey," 83 percent of the 5000 respondents to the nationwide online survey said they would consider a clinical research study, but only 13 percent said they have had the opportunity to take part in one.
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