The blog will be on hold for a few days over the holidays. But first, here is my list of the top ten stories in health, health care, medicine and science over this past year.
1. Conflicts of interest in health care, medicine, research (just one example: the recent news from the Cleveland Clinic)
2. Avian flu (including hype of unproven Tamiflu)
3. Medicareâs prescription drug benefit â“ âgreatest advance for seniors in 40 yearsâ? or âa boondoggleâ??
4. Medicaid cuts â“ impact on states
5. Fallout from aggressive marketing of Cox-2 inhibitors
6. Science stifled by Bush administration
7. Drug prices continue to outpace inflation
8. Continued cost-shifting to employees (AKA consumer-driven health plans)
9. Whatâs going on at the FDA?
10. Lots of news about two people â“ Terri Schiavo and Peter Jennings â“ but relatively little news about 45-million Americand who are uninsured and perhaps twice that number who are under-insured.
A year from now, it would be terrific if the contents of this list would be markedly different.
Opinions on other issues in news, journals, PR, advertising, marketing
Many of the principles that we promoted to journalists and to the general public from 2006-18 are embodied in this terrific project based in Oslo. https://t.co/KO1o9JTYK7
Following a shift in journalism’s business model, a diverse ecosystem of publications, many covering science, has sprung up online. This has made it more difficult to sort out what qualifies as journalism, what doesn’t, and whether the public even cares.
https://t.co/qO2a27FiSe
Researchers and journalists do the public a grave disservice when they spin health study results to make them appear safer or more effective than warranted, says @HealthNewsRevu founder @garyschwitzer https://t.co/QIKsRbP6Ed
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