Ontario Bill Will Reveal Drug Company Payments to Doctors
From the Toronto Star: The province of Ontario has introduced a new transparency bill that will require pharmaceutical and medical device companies to disclose payments they make...
Trump Blamed Pharma’s Political Donations for High Drug Prices
From STAT: On March 20th, President Trump blamed this country's "outrageous" drug prices on campaign contributions from the pharmaceutical industry. The next day, pharmaceutical companies...
Alcohol Industry is Misleading Consumers About Cancer Risk
From MinnPost: According to an international team of researchers, the alcohol industry is misleading the public by misrepresenting and downplaying evidence linking alcohol consumption with cancer.
"For...
Dr. Vinay Prasad Takes on Big Pharma and Big Medicine
In this piece for STAT, Meghana Keshavan profiles Dr. Vinay Prasad, a physician who has become an influential voice in the medical community through his...
Overtreatment is Common, Doctors Say
From The New York Times: In a recent study, researchers surveyed 2,106 physicians in various specialities regarding their beliefs about overtreatment. On average, the doctors...
Review Finds Little Evidence that Electroconvulsive Therapy is Effective for Depression
Researchers examined the dearth of support for Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) for depressive symptoms in light of studies detailing the associated risks.
More Follow Up Needed for Drugs Granted Accelerated FDA Approval
Drugs to treat serious or life-threatening conditions can receive accelerated FDA approval, but may expose patients to increased safety risks and reduced efficacy.
A Blow to STAT’s Credibility: Ghostwriting/PR Influence
From HealthNewsReview.org: STAT recently published an op-ed praising the role of drug company sales representatives. The physician listed as the author has now revealed that he did...
The Most Promoted Drugs are Those with Little Therapeutic Value, Study Finds
Majority of top-selling and most promoted drugs in Canada are rated as having very limited safety and efficacy.
Silicon Valley Courts Brand-Name Teachers, Raising Ethics Issues
From The New York Times: Tech companies are increasingly recruiting school teachers to help improve and promote their education tools in exchange for perks, including...
Has the Era of Gene Therapy Finally Arrived?
From Scientific American: The FDA has announced its approval of Kymriah, the first gene therapy in the U.S. However, gene therapy remains far from fulfilling...
Proove Biosciences Sells Off Assets as CEO Departs
From STAT: Proove Biosciences, which sold dubious DNA tests to predict opioid addiction risk, has been placed into court-ordered receivership for restructuring and asset sale. Experts...
MDMA Crossed a Hurdle on the Path to Being Legally Prescribed
From Yahoo! Finance: The Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS) has passed a major hurdle on the path to getting MDMA approved for medical use....
The State of the Evidence Base for Current Medical Products
In this post for Yale Law School's CRITical Thinking, Tom Jefferson discusses some of the factors that currently serve to undermine rational and ethical medical...
Biotech Exploits a Loophole in a Federal Transparency Law
From STAT: A small biotech company, AveXis, recently offered a $3,000 honorarium along with paid airfare and lodging to several experts to attend a so-called...
Pharma ‘Getting Away With Murder’ Abroad Thanks to Trump
From STAT: Despite accusing the pharmaceutical industry of "getting away with murder" by charging high drug prices, President Trump is now giving drug companies more power...
Researchers Question the “Adequacy and Legitimacy” of ADHD Diagnosis
A new article, just published online in the journal Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties, presents research suggesting that the diagnosis of ADHD is philosophically inadequate.
FDA Seeks Input on Drug Risk Information in Broadcast Ads
From FDA in Brief: The FDA seeks input from consumers and medical professionals on making sure the drug risk information in statements included in direct-to-consumer...
Trust Falls – Are We in a New Phase of Corporate Research?
From The Scholarly Kitchen: We may be in a new phase of corporation-funded research. According to the 2016 Science & Engineering Indicators from the National...
A Supreme Court Pharma Case Deals Consumers a Big Loss
From STAT: The U.S. Supreme Court case of Bristol-Meyers Squibb Co. vs. Superior Court of California, in which hundreds of plaintiffs claimed the drug Plavix...
Vanda Puts Antipsychotic Side Effect Front and Center in TV Ads
From FiercePharma: Vanda Pharmaceuticals, which makes the antipsychotic drug Fanapt, has recently rolled out a national TV campaign to raise awareness of akathisia. The company...
Newly-Revised List of Industry-Independent Experts for Journalists
From HealthNewsReview: For nine years, HealthNewsReview has hosted a one-of-a-kind list of health care industry-independent experts for journalists. The list has now been revised with new...
Ethical Failings in Experimental Drug Safety Trials
Leading human subjects ethics researcher questions exploitation of uninsured minorities in experimental drug trials.
Dr. Joel Lexchin Says Big Pharma is too Close With Physicians
From The Toronto Star: In his new book Doctors in Denial: Why Big Pharma and the Canadian Medical Profession are too Close for Comfort, Dr. Joel...
There’s Little Evidence Abuse-Deterrent Opioids Work
From STAT: In recent years, the pharmaceutical industry has proposed using abuse-deterrent opioids - those that make it more difficult to crush, snort, or inject...
