Universities Misappropriate Federal Grants – Cornell Doctor Blows Whistle Alleging Phantom Studies – WSJ Wed Aug 17, 2005 Scott Fitzgerald’s opener to The Great Gatsby, “the rich are different from you and me…” is most aptly applied today to an elite corps of rich academic scientists. Academia once symbolized a…
Federal Court (Illinois) Rejects FDA-Daniel Troy Preemption Argument Fri, 11 Nov 2005 In yet another federal case (Zikis v Pfizer) involving the company’s failure to warn physicians and the public about the increased risk of suicide effects for pediatric patients prescribed Zoloft, the court rejected Pfizer’s argument that it didn’t need to war…
Suspended Chief Medical Officer of Medicare reassigned to AHRQ Wed, 21 Sep 2005 An example of how little the federal government cares about professinal standards or the integrity of high ranking medical offficers. Contact: Vera Hassner Sharav 212-595-8974 Daily Health Policy Report Kaiser Network Suspended CMS Chief Medical Officer Tunis…
At FDA, Changes In Name Only–Agency Puts Business interests Above Safety Fri, 30 Sep 2005 The sudden resignation of FDA Commissioner, Lester Crawford, after just two months in office, has prompted a bipartisan Senate investigation and requests both by the Senate committee HELP and by congressman Maurice Hinchey (NY) and…
FDA Commissioner Lester Crawford Resigns – AP Fri, 23 Sep 2005 The Associated Press reports that the embattled FDA commissioner, Lester Crawford, a veterenarian, who headed the agency since Marc McLellan moved over to the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services, has resigned effective immediately. Contact: Vera Hassner Sharav 212-595-8974…
FDA Tones Down Warning–Shyra Kallas an SSRI Suicide Victim Fri, 4 Mar 2005 In his recent testimony before the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions committee, Dr. David Fassler, representing the American Psychiatric Association (APA) and the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP), misrepresented the scientific facts about…
Opinion column: Antidepressants Carry Risk– Dr. Joseph Glenmullen Sat, 5 Mar 2005 A hard corps of influential mental health professionals continue to mislead the public‹parents in particular–about the very real and proven risks of antidepressant drugs. In some people‹especially youngsters‹antidepressants have triggered violent and suicidal behavior. Because of the compelling…
Corporate Culture of Denial Results in Preventable Deaths Fri, 7 Jan 2005 Failure to disclose the hazardous effects of Vioxx and Prozac are evidence of a corporate culture that has run amok. Uncovered company documents – some obtained through litigation, others unearthed by whistleblowers – reveal that the manufacturers knew…
Psychiatry’s Claims Re: Brain Imaging Have Far Outpaced Science – NYT Tue, 18 Oct 2005 A front page report in The New York Times Science section pulls the rug out from yet another of psychiatry’s myths. Benedict Carey reports: “Not long ago, scientists predicted that these images, produced by sophisticated…
Lilly Consultants dismiss significance of suicide risk while Lilly will issue Black Box warning label for Strattera Mon, 10 Oct 2005 On September 29, the FDA issued the public health advisory alerting health care professionals that children and adolescents taking Strattera prescribed for ADHD should be closely monitored for changes…
Cong hearing on July 20 is postponed Sun, 18 Jul 2004 We have just received word from the attorney in charge of the hearing that had been scheduled for Tuesday, July 20th that it will not take place on July 20th: “due to a personal matter that Mr. Greenwood was…
More than 100 top regulatory officials represented industry as lobbyists, lawyers… – Denver Post Mon, 24 May 2004 To understand why government policies affecting healthcare, drug safety, food safety and the environment appear to promote industry interests at the expense of public safety and health, the Denver Post has investigated…
