Drug Companies are Outsourcing Drug Trials – WP Wed, 4 May 2005 The Washington Post reports that a study by Tufts has found a drop in the number of pharmaceutical company sponsored drug trials. Fewer new drug applications are being submitted to the FDA, and there has been a drop…
Science & Ethics Hold Up EPA Nomination: pesticide experiment draws fire Fri, 08 Apr 2005 The Los Angeles Times reports that Senator Bill Nelson of Florida is equally outraged about the Environmental Protection Agency pesticide experiment that would expose 60 poor babies to pesticides to study how much harm they…
Protecting Editorial Integrity – Dr. Stefan Kreuszewski BMJ Sun, 6 Feb 2005 In his BMJ editorial, “A tough nut to crack,” Kamran Abassi writes: “The drug industry considers the BMJ a tough nut to crack,” an insider recently told us. Publishing a “favourable” research paper is far trickier in the…
TIME inquiry finds top officials at vital gov agencies lack credentials for the job Date: Wed, 28 Sep 2005 The New York Times reports today that the mystery of Lester Crawford’s abrupt resignation as head of the FDA “fueled speculation that he had investments in companies regulated by the FDA."…
Was Traci Johnson driven to suicide by anti-depressants? That’s a trade secret, say US officials Sun, 19 Jun 2005 The dirty secret is finally tumbling out: Government agencies that are supposed to protect the public interest are shielding drug manufacturers by helping to conceal deaths and suicides in drug experiments….
DHHS Report: Contradicting itself on drug imports – OpEd Peter Rost Wed, 5 Jan 2005 Dr. Peter Rost, a Pfizer Vice-President of Marketing knows about the financial underpinnings of drug pricing. He has taken a consciencious public position (unsusual in that industry) because he believes the American public has a…
20% Drop in Psych Drugs Prescribed for US Children – WashPost Sat, 8 Oct 2005 The Washington Post reports (below) that prescriptions for antidepressants for children have dropped an unprecedented 20% in the US. A continuing series of substantiated reports and Black Box warnings about an increased risk of suicide,…
Pfizer Admits Guilt in Promotion of Neurontin–Agrees to Pay $430 Million Sun, 16 May 2004 A lawsuit initiated by Dr. David Franklin, a whistleblower, has been settled: Pfizer pleaded guilty to criminal fraud in the promotion of Neurontin, and agreed to pay $430 million. This case is but an example…
NYU Students Drugged – NY Post Mon, 19 Apr 2004 Following three suicides by students at New York University (in Sept-October 2003), the University conducted an investigation of the NYU Student Counseling Services. The New York Post reports that an internal 116-page report (December 2003) reveals that whereas drugs were…
Safety of American Drugs Questioned – Assoc Press Thu, 2 Dec 2004 In his CNN news program last evening, Lou Dobbs said the question is no longer whether something is wrong with the FDA’s performance in protecting the public from unsafe drugs–but whether the FDA can even be salvaged? The…
Medicare Will cover New Treatments But Patients Will be Required to Enroll in Clinical Trials Fri, 5 Nov 2004 Dr. Mark McClellan, Director of Medicare, estimates that of Medicare’s $320 billion budget, “a third of all medical expenditures are for unnecessary or ill-advised treatments.” Medicare’s chief medical officer, Dr. Sean…
Glaxo chief executive angry over NYS AG lawsuit – Telegraph Tue, 8 Jun 2004 The significance of the lawsuit filed by NYS Attorney General, Eliot Spitzer, has infuriated Jean-Pierre Garnier, GlaxoSmithKline’s CEO. As Money.Telegraph (UK) reports (below), the AG suit carries a significance beyond the money sought. “Reputationally, however, the…
