STEM CELL ISSUE IS BOTH A POLITICAL FOOTBALL BUT ALSO A RED HERRING
See media frenzy on this issue.
In addition to being a political football for the religious right and progressive left the stem cell issue is a potential red-herring that could divert us from the health care reform issue.
These so called "breakthroughs" haven't produced much for US health consumers/patients recently?
But affordable,efficacious, and safe healthcare for all Americans sure would!
Let's keep our eye on the correct ball and not get duped into false promises of "miracle cures" from the BIOTECH Industry whose main interests are the financial interests of their company officers and stockholders.
Here is what my friend and colleague- a recognized leader in Complementary and Alternative Medicine Dr. Marc Micozzi says about it
"More broadly the false promises (and profits) of the entire biotech industry (if it can be called an industry without making products) are a diversion from the central issues of health. They allow deluded hopes that somehow a next generation of "miracle" cures will save us from disease, disability, death and financial disaster without having to make the tough choices that require a change in paradigm"
He is correct. And he and I are not at all anti-science. But we are both pro-health
Dr. Rick Lippin
http://medicalcrises.blogspot.com
Dr. Lippin, isn't this:
the exact same line Western medicine uses to vilify Eastern, Holistic and Alternative medicines?
Medicine and health-care is market driven (heck, just about everything in the US is, I suppose). Investors and financiers would not pour money into biotech unless they felt the potential return on investment far outweighed the risk of nothing coming from the research.
And, what's the correlation between biotech and stem cell research and a lack of funding for affordable health care? How is scientific progress in one area of medical research a red herring or diversion from the pressing need for more adequate health care coverage?
Wouldn't it stand to reason that research into more efficient, safe, and personalized health care actually complement a push for more adequate health care coverage?
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November 21, 2007 1:20 PM | Reply | Permalink
Eric-please call me Rick
Micozzi like myself resists the excesses of a market driven health care system. It has abysmally failed and has transformed a former profession into a business. It has made a mockery of professional ethics.
Regarding funding for research you may have a point but even there we have far too many unholy and corrupt alliances with vested $ interests.
I believe in funding medical research but we need to focus on geeting basic health care to all Americans first,
Thanks,
Rick Lippin
November 22, 2007 12:40 PM | Reply | Permalink