by Alison Bass | Sep 27, 2010 | Uncategorized
In the latest twist to the saga of Alternatives 2010, the National Empowerment Center, which organized the conference, has apparently reversed course and restored the original language to Will Hall’s workshop — see my earlier blog about the brouhaha over...
by Alison Bass | Sep 27, 2010 | Uncategorized
Less than week before the opening of Alternatives 2010, a conference dedicated to promoting alternatives for better mental health care, the organizers did a strange thing: they decided to remove any language about coming off medications from the title and description...
by Alison Bass | Jul 15, 2010 | Uncategorized
I’ve been experiencing a strong sense of deju vu ever since Gardiner Harris’ story in The New York Times earlier this week that GlaxoSmithKline hid negative findings about a bestselling drug and misrepresented data in a clinical trial of the drug. This...
by Alison Bass | May 31, 2010 | Uncategorized
At a recent talk I gave on health care, the question came up: why isn’t our government negotiating with the pharmaceutical industry to lower drug prices in the US? My audience was a group of sharp-minded Mount Holyoke College alumni, and almost all of them were...
by Alison Bass | Apr 1, 2010 | Uncategorized
In The New York Times yesterday, Duff Wilson did a great job of explaining why many medical experts question the growing use of cholesterol-lowering statins in people without heart problems. He reported on new studies showing the risks of otherwise healthy people...
by Alison Bass | Mar 25, 2010 | Uncategorized
First the good news: The Physician Payment Sunshine Act is now law, signed by President Obama as part of the health care bill overhaul. Starting in 2012, drug and medical device companies must report all consulting, speaking and other payments to doctors and teaching...