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May 20, 2019
3 min

How the FDA Handles Recalls of Life-Saving Implants Could Put People at Risk, Patients Say

Jonesboro resident Geraldine Robinson is one of millions of Americans who use an implanted medical device to improve, and possibly extend...

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sg0251

Feb 26, 2018
3 min

USA Patient Network Responds to Right To Try Legislation

We believe that there is no need for the proposed Right To Try Legislation (RTT). A pathway to such access already exists through the FDA’s

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The New York Times, Roni Caryn Rabin

Sep 11, 2017
3 min

A Suicide Leaves Grief and Tough Questions About an Antidepressant

Wendy Dolin believes that a drug her husband was taking, an antidepressant called Paxil, played a role in his suicide by triggering a side e

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Politico, Sarah Karlin-Smith

Aug 10, 2017
2 min

Libertarians Score Big Victory in "Right-To-Try" Drug Bill

“You have a situation where patients think they want to take a risk and don’t necessarily understand what risk they are taking," said D

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Who What Why, Celia Wexler

Jul 31, 2017
2 min

When Toxic Politics Clash With Toxic Chemicals

The chemical industry, while paying “lip service” to the new law, which it publicly supported, is now trying to “slow walk implementation an

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The Washington Post, Jennifer Block

Jul 26, 2017
3 min

The Battle Over Essure

Women using the "permanent contraceptive" device called Essure are experiencing health problems, such as bad toothaches & head

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Bloomberg BNA, Mike Stankiewicz

Jul 12, 2017
2 min

FDA Eases Notice Requirement on More Than 1,000 Medical Devices

“In addition to risks to patients, these FDA actions mean even less information about the devices that will be available to doctors and thei

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The New York Times, Sheila Kaplan

Jul 10, 2017
2 min

FDA Deal Would Relax Rules on Reporting Medical Device Problems

“It often takes months or even years for the F.D.A. to detect patterns of failure,” said Jack Mitchell, director of health policy for the Na

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The Washington Post, Nicole Van Groningen

Jun 16, 2017
2 min

Big Pharma Gives Your Doctor Gifts and Then Your Doctor Prescribes Their Drugs For You

Doctors who accept visits and gifts from pharmaceutical reps are more likely to be biased in which drugs they prescribe.

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sg0251

Jun 12, 2017
3 min

USA Patient Network Supports Establishing Office of Patient Affairs at FDA

In accomplishing the goal of developing a nuanced understanding of the patient experience by disease, it is critical that any future Office

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Drugwatch, Michelle Llamas

Jun 8, 2017
2 min

Misplaced Trust: Why FDA Approval Doesn’t Guarantee Drug Safety

“FDA approval is based on evidence — provided by the company that makes the medical product — that the benefits of the product outweigh the

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Medscape, Robert Lowes

Jun 2, 2017
2 min

Amy Reed, MD, Morcellator Opponent, Dies of Uterine Cancer

Dr Reed, a mother of six, underwent the hysterectomy at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts, to remove fibroid tumors.

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Modern Healthcare, Mara Lee and Virgil Dickson

May 22, 2017
2 min

Trump budget would cut $636 billion from HHS agencies

“I have never known Congress that enthusiastically cut NIH funding,” she said. But she’s less sanguine about the fate of the Centers for Dis

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The New York Times, Denise Grady

May 22, 2017
2 min

A Shocking Diagnosis: Breast Implants ‘Gave Me Cancer’

Women who have had the lymphoma say that the attention is long overdue, that too few women have been informed of the risk and that those wit

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Kaiser Health News, Sidney Lupkin

May 17, 2017
1 min

Faster FDA Approval But More Safety Issues

“All too often, patients and clinicians mistakenly view FDA approval as [an] indication that a product is fully safe and effective,” he said

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Chicago Tribune, Grace Wong

May 2, 2017
2 min

Patient Network Member Wins Against Pharma

"None of us here are anti-drug. That's not the issue," Dolin added, "but we are patient advocates and we hope that people

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Joshua M. Sharfstein

Apr 28, 2017
2 min

Déjà Vu at the FDA

There is an American tendency to equate scientific review with bureaucratic delay. But it is this review that distinguishes what works from

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STAT News, Ed Silverman

Apr 1, 2017
2 min

Here’s one drug safety rule the FDA should enact — quickly

Next month, the Food and Drug Administration is likely to miss another target date for implementing a rule to improve generic drug safety. I

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Health Affairs Blog, Ellen Sigal

Mar 20, 2017
2 min

How Do We Protect Patients From False Promises In Right-To-Try Laws?

Legislation before Congress seeks to grant all terminally ill patients the “Right to Try” experimental therapies once approved alternatives

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MedPage Today

Mar 20, 2017
1 min

Analysis: Reports of drug side effects increase fivefold in 12 years

More than 1 million reports of drug side effects were filed with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 2015, a fivefold increase since 20

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