CGS-authored
The National Institutes of Health took some long-overdue action Tuesday to ensure its employees are working for the public interest, not the interests of pharmaceutical companies.
California, which has launched a stem cell research program that is similarly fraught with conflicts, should follow the example of the NIH.
The NIH, created in 1948, was once a respected fulcrum of independent science. But for the last decade, the institute allowed its scientists to take consulting fees and acquire stock from biomedical firms. Before long, many of these government scientists were touting the medical therapies of their side employers, although no one knew about the relationship.
In 2003, Los Angeles Times reporter David Willman blew the whistle on this moonlighting in a series of articles that later won the Pulitzer Prize. He continues to document abuses. In response, NIH Director Dr. Elias Zerhouni announced Tuesday that his staff must now divest any holdings in biomedical firms, and stop taking consulting and speaker's fees from such companies.
A mini-NIH
In passing Proposition 71, California voters have effectively created a mini-NIH, one focused on...
California, which has launched a stem cell research program that is similarly fraught with conflicts, should follow the example of the NIH.
The NIH, created in 1948, was once a respected fulcrum of independent science. But for the last decade, the institute allowed its scientists to take consulting fees and acquire stock from biomedical firms. Before long, many of these government scientists were touting the medical therapies of their side employers, although no one knew about the relationship.
In 2003, Los Angeles Times reporter David Willman blew the whistle on this moonlighting in a series of articles that later won the Pulitzer Prize. He continues to document abuses. In response, NIH Director Dr. Elias Zerhouni announced Tuesday that his staff must now divest any holdings in biomedical firms, and stop taking consulting and speaker's fees from such companies.
A mini-NIH
In passing Proposition 71, California voters have effectively created a mini-NIH, one focused on...