Pfizer Paid Doctors Millions To Push Their Drugs

This week it was confirmed, Pfizer Pharmaceuticals pimped out a number of hospitals, paying them and doctors $35 million to push their medicines. The Judiciary Report has seen firsthand how this can be detrimental and wrote about this issue last year in a series of articles ("Off Label Use", Good And Bad Pharmaceutical Drugs, Scientists Call For Drug Database and Manufacturer Knew Vioxx Was Bad).

It's dangerous paying doctors money to push certain medicines on patients, as that particular pharmaceutical drug may not be the best choice and do more harm than good.

Doctors should be free to customize treatment regarding what they deem best, on a patient by patient basis, not hock a certain drug in a category of illness, because a pharmaceutical giant is pressuring and paying them to do so. Patients lose out in the end. Each infirmed person needs the best medicine suited to their particular situation.

Drug companies should be barred from this practice when it is pay for play on a drug with serious side effects.

Pfizer Paid Doctors, Hospitals $35 Million

MARCH 31, 2010, 10:56 P.M. ET - Pfizer Inc. said Wednesday it paid about 4,500 doctors and hospitals $35 million during the second half of last year to study how the company's medicines work and to promote the treatments, in its first public disclosure of payments to the professionals and institutions that test and prescribe its products.

Drug companies have been under pressure from some members of Congress and physicians to reveal their payments. The health overhaul passed recently requires disclosures of certain physician payments starting in 2013. But Pfizer faced a more immediate deadline for revealing its payments: It agreed to ...

http://online.wsj.com

Dick Cheney And Bob Dole Hospitalized

Tricky Dick Cheney

Two of Washington's old guard, former Vice President, Dick Cheney and former Senator, Bob Dole, have been hospitalized (in addition to Bill Clinton last week). Yesterday, Cheney was hospitalized with chest pains, much like Rush Limbaugh a few weeks ago.

The chest pains are most likely stress related, due to fighting President Obama, whose heart is years younger (though he could quit the smoking, as it promotes cancer via first, second and third hand smoke).

These medical events are in addition to the passing of Senators, Ted Kennedy and John Murtha. The Washington landscape is certainly changing.

Dick Cheney Had 'Mild Heart Attack'

Former Vice President was Hospitalized Monday, After Suffering His Fifth Heart Attack

Feb. 23, 2010 - Former Vice President Dick Cheney's office says he had a "mild heart attack" this week -- his fifth -- but is in stable condition and will be released from the hospital in a couple of days...

"Former Vice President Cheney was admitted to GW Hospital after experiencing chest pain," his office said in a statement. "Lab testing revealed evidence of a mild heart attack. He underwent a stress test and a heart catheterization. He is feeling good and is expected to be discharged in the next day or two."...

http://abcnews.go.com

Public Feedback On Bill Clinton's Hospitalization

"Video: Reaction: Clinton recovering from heart surgery"

The above posted video contains public feedback on the hospitalization of former U.S. President Bill Clinton, who was treated for chest pains yesterday in a New York hospital. He has now been released and is resting at his Westchester, New York home.

Bill Clinton Hospitalized With Chest Pains

"Video: Bill Clinton undergoes heart procedure"

Former U.S. President, Bill "Bubba" Clinton, was rushed to the hospital in New York, after complaining of chest pains. Doctors at New York Presbyterian Hospital in Manhattan ascertained Bubba had a blockage and inserted two stents in his coronary arteries, to aid in blood flow.

Former U.S. President Bill Clinton

It is also being reported, a catheter was placed in Clinton's leg, as he underwent an angiogram. In 2004, Clinton underwent quadruple bypass surgery to clear blocked arteries.

Side Bar: tell the truth, when you read headlines that Bubba had a heart attack, you thought to yourself, what was her name? (kidding).

Bill Clinton Hospitalized for Routine Stent Surgery; Stress May Have Triggered Chest Pain

Former President, Known for '20-Hour Days for 20 Years,' Has Heart Surgery After Stressful Haiti Trip

Feb. 11, 2010 - Cardiac specialists say that former President Bill Clinton, who had stent surgery this afternoon at New York-Presbyterian Hospital after complaining about heart pains, will likely have a full recovery.

The former president is having two stents placed in a coronary artery.

Clinton, who is 63, had quadruple bypass surgery at the same hospital in 2004 after angiography revealed significant blockages in four coronary arteries.

Six months later, Clinton had surgery to remove fluid and scar tissue from his left chest cavity...

http://abcnews.go.com

Accident At Super Bowl Half Time Show Rehearsals

Video: Four Hurt in Super Bowl Stage Collapse

Man Coming Out Of Coma Responds To Mind Reading Technology

fMRI

In a follow up to the article "The FBI Continues To Break The Law" it was announced one day later, the same Mind Reading Technology (FMRI - functional magnetic resonance imaging) the Judiciary Report wrote of in the aforementioned entry, has been used in a proper manner, to communicate with a man coming out of a coma who is unable to speak. As discussed yesterday, Mind Reading Technology is appropriate in "a lab or hospital setting."

Vegetative patient "talks" using brain waves

Wed Feb 3, 2010 5:35pm EST - LONDON (Reuters) - A man in a deeply unconscious state for five years has been able to communicate with doctors using just his thoughts in a study scientists say is a "game changer" for care of vegetative state patients.

British and Belgian researchers used a brain scanner called functional magnetic resonance imaging to show the man, who suffered a severe traumatic brain injury in a road accident in 2003, was able to think "yes" or "no" answers to questions by wilfully changing his brain activity.

Experts say the result means all patients in coma-like states should be reassessed and it may change the way they are cared for in future.

After detecting signs of awareness, the doctors scanned the man's brain while he was asked to say "yes" or "no" to questions such as "is your father's name Thomas?." The results showed that by changing his brain activity, the man communicated his answer.

"We were astonished when we saw the results of the patient's scan and that he was able to correctly answer the questions that were asked by simply changing his thoughts," said Adrian Owen, co-author of the study from the Medical Research Council.

"Not only did these scans tell us that the patient was not in a vegetative state but, more importantly, for the first time in five years it provided the patient with a way of communicating his thoughts to the outside world."

The man, now 29 years old, was one of 23 patients diagnosed as being in a vegetative state who were scanned using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)...

http://www.reuters.com