HealthCommentaryWhy buying a tanning booth for the Alaskan governor’s mansion is a bad idea This week we learned that VP candidate Sarah Palin had installed a tanning booth in the Governor’s Mansion in Alaska. When the news broke, the first to react were the Tanning Booth Association advocates. Smart Tan Vice President Joseph Levy said: […]
On June 30, 2008, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) shifted authority on drug safety regulatory issues from the Office of New Drugs (OND) to a shared responsibility between OND and the Office of Surveillance and Epidemiology (OSE). Under the new policy, the drug review and drug safety offices will share equal responsibility on “significant […]
Direct-to-Consumer marketing has its benefitsOver the years, I’ve been on all sides of health care, including a stint directing the Pfizer Medical Humanities Initiative (PMHI). In this role, I worked to leverage the knowledge, assets and resources of a Fortune 10 company to advantage the broader interests of health consumers and the professionals who cared […]
Commonwealth survey says chances for true reform are goodWhen it comes to reforming the U.S. healthcare system, we have a history of all talk, no action. Mostly, patients have been ambivalent about change, while many health care professionals have opposed it because they see the risks (including those to their pocketbooks) far exceeding the benefits. […]
My good friend Larry Minnix, President and CEO of the American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging (AAHSA), never fails to frame a message within a story, and a story within an image. As we approach Labor Day, and in the middle of Political Conventions and the varying values and futures they portray, […]
Now is a good time to sort out the facts Kids will be starting school soon, and for parents of brand new students, that means taking a look at your child’s immunization record. What’s the big-picture connection between immunizations and school? By requiring all new public school students to have up-to-date vaccinations, we’ve reached the […]
An open letter to the presidential candidates In this 2008 United States presidential campaign, as the two main candidates, Barack Obama and John McCain, are being scrutinized by voters and analysts for their strengths and weaknesses, largely related to the war in Iraq and the U.S. economy, we wish to remind the candidates that we […]
