LA state Rep. John LaBruzzo, R-Metairie, is considering paying poor women $1,000 to have their Fallopian tubes tied to limit their reproduction capabilities while simultaneously encouraging wealthy college-educated individuals to have more children through tax incentives.  Labruzzo proudly states that he is aiming to reduce ”the number of people that are going from generational welfare to generational welfare”, [...]

Pfizer, the world’s largest drug company, is getting into stem cell research to explore the potential of induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells (where ordinary cells like those taken from adult skin are coaxed into behaving like embryonic stem cells). Pfizer hopes to build up a team of 50 to 60 scientists specializing in stem cell [...]

The Supreme Court will hear arguments for Wyeth v. Levine, pertaining to whether manufacturers complying with FDA stipulated warning requirements can be held liable under state tort law for not supplying adequate warnings, this November.  Professor Zipursky of Fordham University, my alma mater, provides the following relevant facts: 
Levine’s facts present a shocking tragedy of the sort that can overwhelm [...]

Massachusetts’ first retail-style health clinic, MinuteClinic, opened yesterday targeting clientele in search of quicker and cheaper healthcare – basically greater convenience. MinuteClinic, a subsidiary of CVS Caremark Corp., promises to “brings a new style of health care… with patient rooms in a local pharmacy, offering same-day treatment for basic illnesses and vaccinations,”  reports  Milford Daily News.  [...]

Ethics education and training mitigates risks - and may have helped mitigate a portion of New York City’s current financial mess.  J. Miller, Bioethics International CSM article below.
It used to be that post-World War II recessions in the United States were the bad part of plain vanilla business cycles – inventories had piled up too high as a result of [...]

Wachovia Bank is sponsoring an ethics conference with Appalachian State University.  Healthcare issues including “who should pay for basic healthcare” as well as the importance of savings versus credit, will be discussed by executive and academic panels. “It’s a way to enhance understanding and raise awareness… the two issues cross over: healthcare debt goes along with the debt of [...]

[NYT] HOW much is your life worth? How about a year of life? How much is your vision worth? What about being pain-free? Able to walk unassisted? Have sex?  Unanswerable questions all. Or maybe not.
Economists are sometimes accused of knowing the prices of everything and the value of nothing. Now they are trying to answer [...]

Medical tourism is reaching new levels as US employees are being encouraged to travel both domestically and internationally in order to obtain the best healthcare deal.  According to a WSJ article: ”Some employers are looking to take advantage of geographical variations in the quality and cost of health care within the U.S., while others are leveraging deals they’ve struck [...]

(Adweek) If complaining about the pharmaceutical industry were good for one’s health, Americans would be remarkably robust. Sure, Big Pharma’s products often cure what ails us, despite our unhealthy habits. But this hasn’t saved the prescription-drug industry from becoming a target of consumer resentment, as opinion surveys consistently demonstrate. Indeed, the fact that we need [...]