Archive for December 2017
Gaslighting the Public
To Push a Political Agenda It’s troubling to think that our thought leaders and government officials could intentionally mislead the public. But I was reminded this week after watching “The Post,” a film about the massive coverup that spanned three decades of secrets and lies about the Vietnam conflict, that our government has indeed intentionally…
Read MoreUnintended Consequences of Limiting Prescribed Opioids
Arbitrarily Reducing Opioids Payers, legislators, and healthcare systems are implementing limits on how many pills may be dispensed to people with pain in an effort to curb the opioid crisis. CVS announced this past September they would limit the number of pills new patients with acute pain can obtain to a seven-day supply. Last July,…
Read MorePlease Send the FDA Your Comments
New Opioid Policy Steering Committee On September 29 of this year, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) published a notice — Opioid Policy Steering Committee; Establishment of a Public Docket; Request for Comments — in the Federal Register, The Daily Journal of the United States Government. The FDA is seeking comments from members of the…
Read MoreThe Tribune was wrong. Medicine often involves a risk to the patient.
Please note: This version of the blog originally appeared as an op-ed in the Salt Lake City Tribune on December 10, 2017. The Tribune was wrong. Medicine often involves a risk to the patient. The Salt Lake Tribune published an editorial on Sunday Nov 12, 2017, “Medical professionals need to play a role in opioid crisis.” The…
Read MoreWhat Is a Human Life Worth?
This article first appeared in the 11/29/2017 edition of The Hill. President’s Council of Economic Advisers Calculate the Value of a Human Life President Trump has declared the opioid crisis to be a national health emergency and appears to be developing the rationale for funding interventions to combat the program. The first step is to…
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