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Antivaccine nonsense Medicine Politics

The Ohio statehouse has an antivaccine problem

Ohio, you have a definite antivaccine problem in your statehouse. Unfortunately, Ohio is not alone. Antivaxers have outsized influence in too many state legislatures.

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Antivaccine nonsense Bad science Popular culture Pseudoscience Quackery

The tragic death of Evee Clobes: How antivaxers recruit grieving mothers to their cause

Evee Clobes was a six month old who died due to SIDS. Unfortunately, antivaxers used the grief of her mother Caitlin to recruit her to their cause. It’s an all too common tactic, because antivaxers know that grieving mothers are their most potent messengers.

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Medicine Politics Popular culture

“Right-to-try” in 2019: Still a failure, still all about the Benjamins (and weakening the FDA)

Federal “right-to-try” legislation was passed and signed into law by President Trump over a year ago. Advocates promised that lots of terminally ill people who were dying then would be saved by having the right to “try” experimental therapies outside of the context of clinical trials. That has not happened. This should come as no surprise, because right-to-try was never about getting experimental drugs to dying patients. It was always about weakening the FDA and making money.

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Complementary and alternative medicine Integrative medicine Medicine Popular culture Pseudoscience Quackery

“Dr.” Tad Sztykowski: One reason why acupuncture should not be licensed

Tad Sztykowski is an acupuncturist who lost his acupuncture license for misrepresenting himself as a physician. His case is a good illustration of why licensing quack specialties like acupuncture is bad policy.

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Bad science Bioethics Clinical trials

Pay-to-play clinical trials: The HHS Secretary’s Advisory Committee on Human Research Protections (SACHRP) weighs in

The ethics of pay-to-play clinical trials are a minefield. Last week the HHS Secretary’s Advisory Committee on Human Research Protections (SACHRP) stepped into that minefield. Are “pay-to-play” clinical trials ever ethically acceptable?