In Walpole, Massachusetts the circus is always in town. This is because Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. opened his national presidential campaign headquarters there in 2023. RFK, Jr. may blame some of his erratic behavior, mostly regarding science and medicine, on his brain-eating worm, but I don't buy it. He was saying crazy s### well before Wormgate. Here's some of it.
Policy & Ethics
Whether it's primary health care, specialized medical care, or mental health care, Americans are experiencing fewer choices and longer wait times accessing clinicians. Many of these difficulties result from government interventions that limit innovation and restrict new entrants in the health care marketplace. An education policy scholar at a conservative think tank seemed interested in reforming the system, but nativist and protectionist biases got in the way
Academic journals and the researchers who publish in them are increasingly engaged in naked political advocacy rather than science. It's time we cut off public funding to peer-reviewed publications and reduce the number of academic scientists chasing after grant money.
Both scientific and policy advancements could provide desperately needed organs for transplantation. For example, there have been some promising early studies using kidneys from pigs genetically engineered to prevent rejection, but a policy change – paying human donors for donating organs – could be implemented immediately and would be a game changer.
The more the U.S. spends on interest payments, the less it can spend on R&D, biotech, or even basic services like Medicare.
Can a high school compel an unwilling student to be vaccinated against COVID-19 and be immune from liability? Turns out the answer is yes, at least according to a recent North Carolina decision.
The DEA announced its plans to re-schedule cannabis from a Schedule 1 drug to Schedule 3 on its list of controlled substances. But this makes it federally illegal to consume cannabis without a doctor’s prescription. We don’t need a doctor’s prescription to purchase alcohol for recreational use at the corner liquor store. We shouldn’t need one for recreational cannabis.
In a justice system where safety is paramount, the debate between progressive prosecutors and their law-and-order counterparts rages on. With divergent approaches to crime, each camp champions its ideology, leaving the public caught in the crossfire. But what policies truly reduce crime?
In a sea of skepticism, while politicians scrape the bottom of global trust rankings, scientists more frequently bask in the warm glow of public confidence. A recent study suggests that not all lab coats are created equal and that a moral compass, rather than knowledge, is critical.
The People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals criticized the South Dakota governor for shooting a farm dog. But PETA has killed far more.
Artificial Intelligence plays an increasingly prominent role in modern life, medicine included. While the technology promises to improve health care in many ways, it also carries potentially serious risks. That raises a critical question: when AI harms patients, who's responsible?
Medical schools emphasizing DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) as criteria for admissions is a prescription for disaster.