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Shakedown Lawsuits, Not Safety, Explain Drug Shortages – Commentary
U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) called on U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Robert Califf, M.D. to take “appropriate actions to investigate and recall products with unacceptable levels of benzene.” In a letter to Califf on October 31, 2023, Blumenthal alleged an “independent quality assurance company,” a fancy phrase for a lab, found “unacceptable”…
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$1 Million Prize at Stake in Debate on Safety, Effectiveness of COVID-19 Shots
A businessman is offering $1 million to anyone who can prove the mRNA COVID-19 inoculations did not kill more people than they saved. Entrepreneur, vaccine critic, and alternative therapy advocate Steven Kirsch, the inventor of the optical mouse and founder of Infoseek, Frame Technology Corp, Abaca, and OneID, issued the challenge during the COVID-19 crisis.…
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Report: Child Died During Clinical Trial of COVID-19 Shots
Concerns about the safety and efficacy of mRNA COVID-19 shots have increased after a January 3 report that drug maker Moderna failed to inform the U.S. government of the death of a child during clinical trials of its vaccine, as required by law. “A preschool-aged child died of cardio-respiratory arrest after getting a booster shot…
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Lockdowns Caused Changes in Teen Brains, Study Finds
The COVID-19 lockdowns caused significant changes in adolescents’ brains, a scientific study has found. Researchers at the University of Washington in Seattle used MRI data to show the normal thinning of the cortex that happens during adolescence was accelerated in teens during the lockdowns. The effect was greater in female brains than in male brains,…
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What the FDA Gets Wrong About Drug Ads – Commentary
There are only two countries in the world where drug manufacturers are allowed to advertise their products directly to consumers: the United States and New Zealand. Drug companies in the United States spend $4 billion a year on TV ads alone. The typical TV drug ad these days usually touts the benefits of a drug—maybe with a lot of…
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Where to Draw the Line on Outrageous Health Care Prices – Commentary
I often write about high prices in health care. Some gene therapy drugs cost more than $1 million for a one-time treatment. The latest oncology drugs are especially expensive. Danyelza (for neuroblastoma) and Kimmtrak (uveal melanoma) cost $1.2 million and $1.1 million, respectively. The average annual cost of a new cancer drug is more than $250,000.…
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Spending, Not Coverage, Is Biggest Problem in Health Care – Commentary
By Douglas Holtz-Eakin Roughly a decade ago, on October 1, 2013, the ignominious launch of the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) healthcare.gov website signaled the end of an era. The years leading up to the passage of the ACA featured two pressing national health policy issues: covering more (or all) Americans with health insurance, and the…
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States Differ in Responses to 340B Program Abuse
Widespread and longstanding abuse of a federal program designed to provide prescription drugs to low-income patients has prompted lawmakers in Minnesota and Michigan to try to rein in the 340B program in the absence of significant reforms by the federal government. Minnesota recently enacted a law requiring covered entities to begin providing annual reports with…
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Report: Hospital Executives Are Getting Paid Millions of Dollars a Year
Crain’s Detroit Business published a list of the 25 highest-paid hospital executives in Michigan, and all received compensation in seven figures, based on data from 2022. Philip Incarnati of McLaren Health Care topped the list at $10,783,705 a year, a 9 percent increase in 2022, which happened at the tail end of the COVID-19 restrictions…
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There is a Way to Avoid Paying for Other People’s Health Care – Interview
As health care spending soars (see page 20) and health insurers increasingly delay or deny claims (see pages 7, 17), consumers are retreating to indemnity-style insurance protection, which pays a cash benefit for adverse health events. Indemnity-style health insurance is a feature of Plan for America (PFA,) a voluntary private savings proposal designed to rescue…
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