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The CDC study,
published online in Emerging Infectious Diseases, reviewed dairy-related outbreaks between 1993 and 2006 in all 50 states, during which time the authors counted 121 dairy-related illness outbreaks resulting in 4,413 illnesses, 239 hospitalizations and three deaths.
Despite raw milk products accounting for approximately one percent of dairy production in the U.S., raw milk dairies were linked to 60 percent of those dairy-related outbreaks. In addition, 202 of the 239 hospitalizations (85 percent resulted from raw milk outbreaks. Thirteen percent of patients from raw milk outbreaks were hospitalized, versus one percent of patients from pasteurized milk outbreaks.
Seventy-five percent of the raw milk outbreaks occurred in the 21 states where the sale of raw milk was legal at the study's onset in 1993. Today, 30 states permit the sale of raw milk, while another seven are considering raw milk legislation changes this year.
The study found that individuals under the age of 20 accounted for 60 percent of those affected by raw milk outbreaks, compared with 23 percent associated with pasteurized products. Children were also more likely than adults to become seriously ill from pathogenic bacteria in raw milk.
The differences in illness severity between raw and pasteurized milk are largely due to the pathogens present in each: People sickened from raw milk typically ingest injurious bacteria -- most commonly Salmonella or Campylobacter -- whereas pasteurized milk outbreaks more often result from "relatively mild" pathogens such as norovirus, according to the CDC.
This is the first comprehensive federal-level update to raw milk statistics of this kind since 1998, when the Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition released
a similar review of raw milk outbreaks spanning from 1973 to 1992. That study found that 46 raw milk outbreaks occurred during the review window, with 40 of them in states with legal raw milk sales.
At the time, the 1998 study concluded that "consumption of raw milk remains a preventable cause of foodborne illness." Similarly, Tuesday's CDC study suggested that "stronger restrictions and enforcement should be considered."
"It's really helpful to have these numbers updated as interest in raw milk increases through activist groups," said Michele Jay-Russell, Ph.D., program manager of the Western Center for Food Safety at University of California Davis.
"I wouldn't say the statistics are surprising, but it's helpful to know that, unfortunately, things have not really changed since the last report," she added. "Despite being in the 21st century, raw milk continues to make people sick."
The study comes on the heels of one of the largest raw milk outbreaks in U.S. history. As of Tuesday, 77 people in four states been sickened in a Campylobacter outbreak linked to raw milk from Your Family Cow dairy in Pennsylvania that began in late January. At least nine of the victims from that outbreak have been hospitalized.
Many of those who are ill in that outbreak are children. "Parents who have lived through the experience of watching their child fight for their life after drinking raw milk now say that it's just not worth the risk," said Dr. Barbara Mahon, co-author of the CDC study, in a news release.
Since January 2007, the end of the study's review window, there have been
at least 56 additional foodborne illness outbreaks associated with raw milk. Between 2010 and 2011, raw dairy products
were linked to 21 outbreaks and 201 illnesses, while pasteurized dairy products caused two outbreaks and 39 illnesses.
According to Jay-Russell, nearly all instances of outbreaks from pasteurized dairy occur because of contamination after the pasteurization process.
This year, Indiana, New Jersey, Iowa, Idaho, New Hampshire, Kentucky and Wisconsin have all considered changes to their raw milk sales laws. The majority of the bills under review would either permit the sale of raw milk where currently illegal, or remove certain restrictions on its sale in states where it's already permitted.
Federal law restricts the transport of raw milk across state lines for sale, though consumers are free to travel across state lines to purchase milk and take it home, and there is no law against consuming unpasteurized milk.
The push for loosened raw milk sales rules across many states runs counter to the best scientific recommendations the CDC and Food and Drug Administration can make based on the available data, Jay-Russell said. Many raw milk proponents argue that raw milk provides nutrients and numerous health benefits negated by the pasteurization process, while many food scientists say there's no credible scientific evidence for any of those claims.
"It's [the CDC and FDA's] charge to look at the health statistics and inform the public and help policy makers create policy that makes sense," Jay-Russell said. "But there's a push-back. Some groups don't want government influence over food, so it makes it a much more political debate than a scientific one."
Continue reading "Kentucky Marijuana Bill Named In Honor Of Gatewood Galbraith" >
As we've pointed out here several times in the past nine months, the anti-choice forces
made major strides in making legal abortions harder to get in 2011. They did their work at the state level where they have achieved steady, damaging victories for a number of years, but were especially emboldened by the Republican success at the polls in 2010.
To condense, 135 provisions were enacted in 36 states during 2011 relating to reproductive health or rights. Eighty-nine of those provisions restricted abortion, 50 more than in 2005, the previous record year for such legislation. Dry statistics. But as Carole Joffe
reports, they are causing personal pain. Both for women seeking abortions and for providers.
First consider Jennie McCormick. She ordered abortion medication over the internet and now faces criminal charges that could put her away for five years. Joffe writes: "She has also been stigmatized in her own community to a degree to which the fictional Hester Prynne of
The Scarlet Letter
fame could relate." From the
Independent:
When Jennie Linn McCormack walks the streets of Pocatello, the town in southern Idaho where she was born, raised, and still lives, she attempts to disguise her face by covering it with a thick woollen scarf.
It doesn't really work. In the supermarket, people stop and point. At fast-food outlets, they hiss "it's her!" In the local church, that supposed bastion of forgiveness, fire-and-brimstone preachers devote entire sermons to accusing her of mortal sin. [...]
Then she found out from her sister about RU-486, the abortion-inducing drug. Her sister ordered it, and McCormack took the pill as soon as it arrived. It worked. But there were complications that brought the fact of her abortion to the notice of authorities. In Idaho, self-induced abortions are outlawed. Although the original charges against McCormack were dismissed last summer, they could be reinstated. The whole affair has put the issue of the constitutionality of the ban in Idaho, and by extrapolation similar bans in six other states, into the hands of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.
Then there is the provider. Joffe relates the example of Amy Hagstrom Miller, who oversees abortion clinics in Texas under the name Whole Women's Health. She and her clients now have to contend with new obstacles from a state law that requires a woman seeking an abortion to obtain an ultrasound from a physician who must describe to her in detail the development of the fetus. The same physician must perform the abortion, which presents a huge scheduling problem.
But, more importantly, the vast majority of abortions are performed at 12 weeks of pregnancy or less. The fetus is quite small at this phase. That means that physicians who want to avoid running afoul of a law that is intended by its sponsors to reduce abortions must use a transvaginal probe. That requires penetrating a woman's vagina, "state rape," as opponents have so rightly called it. If she refuses, no abortion.
From Idaho to Texas and other states across the nation, it's all part of the long-running effort to end legal abortions. There is nothing the anti-choice forces will not stoop to in their relentless war on reproductive freedom.
Merlin
Democratic Republic of the Congo (the
06 Mar 2012
Responsible To: Provincial Operations Manager Working With: Field medical and non medical team members Location: Birambizo health zone, Rutshuru territory, North Kivu Province, DRC Start Date: ASAP Duration: 12 months
Salary: ?27,980 - ?28,730 per annum (dependant on relevant experience , inclusive of annual Cost of Living Allowance Benefits: Insurance cover, accommodation, R&R, annual leave entitlement of 24 days per annum rising to 30 days at the completion of 12 months of continuous employment with Merlin.
Only short-listed applicants will be contacted. Due to the urgency of this position, applications will be short listed on a regular basis and we may offer this post before the closing date.
Please note that this is an unaccompanied position
Merlin Undaunted and determined, Merlin saves lives. We deliver medical expertise to the toughest places. And we stay to help build lasting health care.
Our mission is to end the needless loss of life in the poorest countries caused by a lack of effective health care. We help communities set up medical services for the long term including hospitals, clinics, surgeries and training for nurses and other health workers.
We do whatever it takes and we stay for as long as it takes.
Context and Background The Democratic Republic of Congo (formerly Zaire is the third largest country in Africa and The Democratic Republic of Congo is the second largest country in Africa and one of the poorest. Decades of dictatorship and civil war have left much of the national infrastructure destroyed. Merlin has been operational in DRC since 1997. Merlin teams have provided emergency medical care to the most vulnerable populations in Maniema, Kasai Oriental , North Kivu and Orientale Provinces. Activities have included emergency response, support to primary and secondary health care facilities (including supervision, supply of drugs, and the payment of incentives , reproductive health, institutional capacity building, immunisation campaigns, nutrition, WASH, and the rehabilitation of health facilities.
From 1 January 2012 Maniema and North Kivu will operate as autonomous programmes, each reporting direct to head office in London; they will be supported by country offices in Goma and Kinshasa. In North Kivu Merlin currently works in Rutshuru/Binza, Kayna, and Birambizu health zones, providing essential health care services to DPs and host populations; and will provide the health component of the rapid response to movements of population (RRMP mechanism throughout the province.
Main purpose of the role The Birambizo Project Coordinator will be responsible for managing the Nyanzale office, the Tongo sub-base and for overseeing Merlin project activities in the whole Birambizo health zone. This includes overseeing logistic activities, responsibility for security and ensuring proper financial procedures are followed for the project implementation. She/He is also responsible for the coordination, management and capacity building of national staff members.
Overall Objectives (scope • Base management • Project Management and Development • Administration and Finance • Human Resources • Security • Representation Responsibilities
Base Management • Ensure adequate information flow within Nyanzale and Tongo teams and between Nyanzale and Goma offices • Create/maintain a “team spirit” within the Merlin staff
Project Management and Development • Budget holding of the Merlin (sub- projects implemented in Birambizo • Plan and monitor project activities and outputs against project Logframes and budgets. This includes grant opening, grant closing and monthly grant monitoring meetings with all departments, as well as activity, procurement and financial planning. • Ensure the delivery of the project according to objectives and time-frames • Reporting – internal and external - for daily and weekly site communications. • Ongoing evaluation and development of proposals
Security • Responsible for the security of the Merlin team and assets in a changeable and volatile security environment, including initiating and organising evacuation if necessary • Ongoing monitoring of the security situation in the region • Prepare and update security guidelines and ensure that these are adhered to • Provide timely and accurate security/incident reports to the Project Coordinator and Goma Security Focal Point • Maintain regular contacts with key actors in relation to security (local authorities, the community, MONUC, OCHA, etc.
Logistics • Assure planning, procurement and follow-up of goods in line with project and base needs • Collaborate with Merlin Goma Logistics to assure planning, procurement and timely delivery of drugs and medical consumables to Merlin-supported Health Facilities, avoiding stock ruptures • Assure Merlin procurement and logistics procedures are followed • Manage, register and maintain Merlin assets • Manage and document warehouse and transport of Merlin goods according to Merlin procedures
Admin and Finance
Human Resources • Supervise and directly or indirectly line-manage all Merlin staff in Birambizo • Ensure that Merlin recruitment and appraisal procedures are followed • To ensure that all staff management is carried out according to the Merlin internal regulations and the DRC labour code • To provide the HR dept in Goma with monthly staff information updates and keep them informed on all disciplinary matters • Organise and supervise capacity building and development of national staff
Representation • Represent Merlin and its activities to key stakeholders (community, authorities, donors, other (I NGOs, partners • Closely collaborate with MoH on Health Zone level and assure that Merlin projects effectively contribute to MoH capacity building and comply with MoH strategies
Other • Provide meaningful reporting on project activities to Goma office • Provide coverage for other posts when needed and carry out any other responsibilities as requested by the Country Director
Person Specification Essential Qualifications, experience and competences
• Experience and proven skills in budget holding and management • Experience and proven skills in Project Management • Experience of working in security and unstable environments • Strong communication skills, with excellent written and spoken English and French • Knowledge and understanding of project management tools (Logical Framework analysis, project cycle management, indicators etc. • Proven problem solving and organizational skills, flexible and calm under pressure • Strong leadership skills and a supportive management style • Good team worker, able to live and work closely with a small team • Computer skills (Word, Excel, E-mail • Experience of proactively identifying and addressing issues • An understanding of and commitment to Merlin’s mission and values
Desirable Qualifications, experience and competences
• Working experience in DRC / Central Africa • Experience in health care management in insecure and instable contexts
To apply for this position To apply for this job, please go to
www.merlin.org.uk/jobs and apply using our online recruitment system. In order to apply for a job with Merlin online you will need to complete a short registration process and create an account – the online recruitment system explains how to do this. Once your account has been created, you will be able to save the information that you have entered in your application and re-visit it at any time before you submit it.
If you are unable to apply online please contact:
applications@merlin.org.uk.
Please note that we do not accept CVs. Unfortunately due to the number of applications we receive, only shortlisted applicants will be contacted.
In case you hadn't heard, the Academy Awards are on ABC this Sunday. Regardless of what you think of the nominees, it is clear that the film business is at a crossroads. Fewer people went to the movies in 2011 than any year since Al Gore invented the internet; our nation's multiplexes are in the throes of an epidemic called sequelitis; and the Academy could barely settle on a host for Sunday's Oscars.
But this week, my focus is on the most vulnerable members of the Academy: The Actors. Actors have more at stake than anyone at this annual bacchanalia -- their faces are the most recognizable and their personas are most associated with the success or failure of a film. And, even more perplexing and daunting: winning an Oscar may actually be more hazardous to an acting career than losing. Winning an Oscar puts more of a microscope on an actor than dating Leonardo DiCaprio. The choices one makes in the years immediately following an Oscar victory can either enhance your status, or destroy whatever credibility that comes with an Academy nod.
While winning an Academy Award is probably a huge honor (I wouldn't know , an analysis of past winners shows a more complicated, even precarious set of consequences for the chosen few. Last year, on
Grantland,
Lane Brown brilliantly analyzed the damage certain actors have done to their Oscar standing, explicitly quantifying just how much their subsequent performances either burnished or tarnished their Academy Award. He, of course, measured this metric in units called 'cubas' (named for the epitome of the post-Oscar slump, Cuba Gooding, Jr. .
This was indeed a useful breakdown. But Brown (now culture editor at
New York
Magazine , missed an opportunity to do even more good with his analysis. First, he failed to provide these actors much needed advice on how to avoid the career lapses of those he analyzed. What good is pointing out the pitfalls, without offering counsel for better choices in the future? More importantly, he neglected to show how a good television role could actually be an antidote for cubas -- sustaining the health of a post-Oscar career.
The 'small screen' has become a refuge for many Oscar winners -- a rehab for cubas if you will. On TV an Oscar-winner can do good work, pick up some additional awards -- and get paid extremely well. What's more, TV offers a wider array of good roles for actors who win an Oscar but then find it difficult to find meaningful parts in a film industry increasingly dedicated to sequels, comic books and CGI.
I am not suggesting that these actors completely ignore their movie careers, but rather that this year's class of nominees; and the long list of past winners; consider what is now reality -- television is an important way to expand your talents, extend your career and rid yourself of cubas. For proof, just ask
Anna Paquin (
True Blood
,
Linda Hunt (
NCIS LA
,
Anjelica Huston (
Smash
,
Jessica Lange (
American Horror Story
,
Sally Field (
Brothers & Sisters
,
Richard Dreyfuss (
Weeds
and
Parenthood
,
Kathy Bates (
The Office, Harry's Law
,
Dianne Weist (
Law & Order, In Treatment
,
Melissa Leo (
Treme
and
Mildred Pierce
,
Kate Winslet (
Mildred Pierce
,
Maggie Smith (
Downton Abbey
and, yes, even
Dustin Hoffman (
Luck
. Look even further at past nominees,
Gary Sinise (
CSI: NY
, Laura Linney (
The Big C
,
Laura Dern (
Enlightened, Recount, Citizen Ruth
,
William H. Macy and Joan Cusack (
Shameless
,
Don Cheadle (
House of Lies
and, yes, even
Nick Nolte (
Luck
.
It's interesting that more women seem to take advantage of this television cross over -- perhaps because film offers fewer good parts for women over 45 than it does for men over 50, while TV is experiencing a golden age for "actresses of a certain age." Considering this, it's curious that MORE Best Supporting Actress Oscar winners have yet to cross over, given the propensity for winners in that category to all but disappear from film after winning. The Best Supporting Actress Oscar can be like the Bermuda Triangle of the film business.
There are a number of reasons that TV is a safer place for Oscar winners than film: there is more TV than film; TV development takes far less time than for movies; and TV does not live or die over the first weekend. Whatever the reason, right now, if you are an Oscar winner looking to avoid cubas, it's time to get over the 'it's not film' thing, and start looking at TV projects that enhance your statue and stature.
With that in mind, here is my list of 11 Oscar Winners Who Need a TV Show, STAT:
Adrien Brody (Best Actor,
The Pianist
. Brody took everyone by surprise with his performance in
The Pianist
. He became the youngest guy to ever win Best Actor and even had an awesome acceptance speech -- that Halle Berry kiss was just so smooth. And then after Oscar night... not so much. While he's done some good work since winning, it's arguable that his best performance recently, was in a Heineken commercial. I think it's clear that the movies just don't know what to do with this smart, unconventional looking guy. And, with so much career still ahead, a few years on a really good show could help ensure he hasn't already peaked. Suggested Role: Brody would make a classic cable anti-hero, maybe a card shark in a TV version of Rounders or a drug addicted doctor opposite Eddie Falco in
Nurse Jackie
.
Cher (Best Actress,
Moonstruck
. For god's sake just put her in
Smash
already.
Reese Witherspoon (Best Actress,
Walk The Line
. It's a shame really -- Witherspoon had a good career ahead of her, and then she had to go and win the Oscar. Yes, she was terrific in
Walk The Line
, but since, it's clearly been tough to find good scripts that don't accumulate cubas. (
Water For Elephants
was a cuba machine. The secret to her future success is not in
Legally Blonde
or
Walk The Line
, and it is certainly not in
This Means War
-- it's in
Election
. She was flat out great in that film (and in
Cruel Intentions
and in
American Psycho
. That type of dark dramedy caters to her mischievous (non-rom-com side and it's a specialty that sets her apart from her peers. It's also a core competency of cable series right now (see
Breaking Bad, Nurse Jackie, Shameless, Enlightened, Damages
, etc . Hey Reese, find a script where you can be bad. Suggested Role: A fictional version of Heidi Fleiss or Christina Aguilera.
Christoph Waltz (Best Supporting Actor,
Inglourious Basterds
. In yet another Tarantino, plucked-from-obscurity piece of casting, Waltz emerged from German television to play the role of a lifetime. Unfortunately, no one has known what to do with him since. (He too caught a lot of cubas in
Water For Elephants
. If he continues to concentrate on American film, he is likely doomed to playing cartoon villains for the rest of his career. But what has been lost since
Basterds
is just how funny Waltz is. Suggested Role: Hey, Dan Harmon, do us all a favor cast him as a European Lit Professor in
Community
!
Jennifer Connelly (Best Actress,
A Beautiful Mind
. One of the many awesome things to come out of the movie
Labyrinth
, Connelly has had the unfortunate distinction throughout her career of being the best thing in mediocre films.
A Beautiful Mind
gave her the chance to be in a generally all-around good film, with a number of other great performances. But those type of opportunities have not been plentiful since, and now Connelly is at that awkward tweener age for film actresses; over forty. In films, I fear she'll be relegated to playing the beleaguered wives and girlfriends of shallow main characters (
The Dilemma, The Day The Earth Stood Still
; but on TV, actresses of her talent, age and beauty are not forgotten, they are fA?ted. On television, she'd not only be a leading lady, but just by showing up, she'd be an Emmy contender. Suggested Role: Since
American Horror Story
is killing off everyone each season, I cannot help but hope that Ryan Murphy considers her for a juicy part -- that show just won Jessica Lange a Golden Globe to go alongside her two Oscars.
Robin Williams (Best Supporting Actor,
Good Will Hunting
. He got his start on TV, but Williams seemed destined to win an Oscar, nominated three times in five years for
Dead Poets Society, Fisher King
(still his best performance and
Good Morning Vietnam
. But it wasn't until he chilled out and took a back seat, a decade later, that he finally won for
Good Will Hunting
. Since then, he's made some really, really bad films (
Death To Smoochy
is the textbook example of how to earn cubas , yet still managed to turn in some very good performances in films no one saw (
One Hour Photo, Insomnia
. Despite a tendency to chew the scenery, the guy can act. Robin, stop making
RV
and
Night At The Museum
(please! and come back to TV -- I promise, we won't make you wear the suspenders. Suggested Role: Williams needs a supporting role where his specific talents can thrive. Hey HBO, want a guaranteed Emmy win? How about Williams in
Boardwalk Empire
as a washed-up gangster; in
Game Of Thrones
as a undecipherable mystic (I do not watch the show nor have I read the books, so I apologize in advance for offending GoT nerds with the word 'mystic' ; in
Luck
as a drug-addled gambler; or in
Veep
as a bipolar political mastermind?
Joe Pesci (Best Supporting Actor,
Goodfellas
. What's up with this guy? Over the course of his career, he's done drama, he's done comedy (no, you are not a clown! ; he's even done music. But for the past decade he's done almost nothing -- nada. Hey Joe, it's time to get back in the game. Don't leave
Gone Fishin'
and
Lethal Weapon 4
as the last two things on your resume! Come over to TV -- it's a good gig and the catering is excellent. Suggested Role: A tough guy investigator on a nice CBS procedural drama, something where he can bring the Jersey but also play the humor. Just imagine what Pesci would have done with
Cracker
.
Hilary Swank (Best Actress,
Boys Don't Cry & Million Dollar Baby
. Swank clearly has acting chops. However, someone needs to give her more to do than visiting Chechen Birthday Parties and staring in films like
New Year's Eve
(I'm still not sure which of these offenses was worse . Despite two Oscars, Swank's been enormously under-utilized since her last win. Again, she's in that odd tweener age where film actresses seemingly fall through the feature cracks, but where TV gives them great roles and wins them Globes and Emmys. Hillary, grab a TV show and show your stuff. Suggested Role: She could definitely command her own show, but Showtime should scoop her up for three of their series -- an alcoholic love interest for Frank on
Shameless
; a mysterious CIA agent on
Homeland
; and a sexy rival consultant for Don Cheadle on
House of Lies
.
Frances McDormand (Best Actress,
Fargo
. I could watch McDormand do anything -- sing the national anthem, read a phone book, even darn socks. And, frankly, she doesn't necessarily need the work (she was just on Broadway, her husband will always give her good film roles , but on TV, we'd get to see here perform weekly, and she would all but be guaranteed an Emmy nomination (and maybe we can keep her out of
Transformers 4
. Most importantly, someone has to convince her and the Coens to turn
Fargo
into a TV show!!! How awesome would THAT be? "Oh sure I'll investigate that murder, as soon as I scrape off my windshield... you bet'cha!"
Cuba Gooding, Jr. (Best Supporting Actor,
Jerry Maguire
. The very person for whom cubas were named, Gooding took what was perhaps one of the best Oscar moments in modern history... and squandered it. However, if TV can resurrect his tarnished Oscar cred, it could do anything. I'm not sure how good an actual actor he is (hard to tell from
Snow Dogs
and
Radio
, but I am 100% convinced in the curative powers of television. C'mon Hollywood, let's make his career the poster child for the TV comeback! We can do it! Suggested Role: Give him an
NCIS
spin-off and call it a day --
NCIS Seattle
; they have the Navy there, don't they?
Marisa Tomei (Best Supporting Actress,
My Cousin Vinny
. Ever since Jack Palance announced her win, Tomei has had a hard time finding roles that match her talents and can help overcome the rumor that Palance misread the envelope. And although, she's recently given great performances in
The Wrestler, Crazy Stupid Love
and especially
Cyrus
(see it! , she's mostly been wasted in secondary roles, in small movies, that not many people see. She was awesome in
Rescue Me
a few years back, and she deserves a chance to prove that she really did deserve that Oscar. Suggested Role: Tomei won for a comedy and
Cyrus
proves she can still play funny. What if Larry and Marisa hooked up on
Curbed
?
There are many, many more talented Oscar winners whose careers could use a good dose of TV. Get F. Murray Abraham (doing tons of guest spots these days a recurring role on
Sons of Anarchy
! Gwyneth Paltrow already did
Glee
, how about a recurring character on
Portlandia
? Shirley MacLaine is joining
Downton Abbey
, now let's get Kim Basinger (embodiment of the Supporting Actress curse or Jodie Foster in that castle! And even though Bill Murray didn't win his Oscar, he should have, and he should be back on TV, where we will finally get him a trophy. How about a series about a washed-up golfer?
So, 2012 Oscar Nominees, as you're walking the Red Carpet this Sunday, contemplating your next move, remember this: TV is The Cure For cubas!
In 2009, the FDA told Johnson & Johnson it could no longer sell an unsafe hip replacement in the United States. That didn’t stop the New Jersey health care giant from selling the device in other countries.
Now, the New Brunswick company faces up to $3 billion in legal and medical costs over the device, which J&J finally recalled in 2010 after evidence was revealed that it was leaving tiny, painful slivers of metal in many of those overseas patients.
Inside J&J, workers take pride in the corporation’s famous credo. Summarized, it says: Act ethically and responsibly, no matter the cost, and profits will follow.
J&J is proof that profits follow bad corporate behavior, too.
In 2010, the company earned a record $13 billion. At the same time, it paid roughly $750 million in government fines and settlements for a laundry list of wrongs. It was fined $70 million for overseas bribery, shut down a children’s drug factory for safety violations and was investigated for a “phantom” recall of tainted Motrin.
Defenders of the 1 percent insist corporations and their executives have every right to amass whatever fortunes they can in America’s free market.
But the headlines reveal that many big businesses are raking in billions without conscience. What we’re seeing is a grotesque shift in corporate values that undermines Corporate America’s image as the benevolent job creator.
Occupy Wall Street zeroed in on the enormous gap in pay between corporate executives and the so-called 99 percent. But not enough was said about the erosion of corporate citizenship and the lengths to which Big Banking, Big Pharma and Big Oil, just to name a few, will go to increase profits at the expense — even the victimization — of humanity. (See accompanying chart for some awful offenses.
We see deadly accidents in coal mines and on oil rigs as owners cut corners on worker and environmental protections; patients put at risk when pharmaceutical companies take already successful drugs and try to drive profits even higher by selling them for diseases the FDA never studied nor approved; taxpayers footing fraudulent bills as contractors look at government like a blank check, overcharging millions or more.
It is understandable for companies to pull back on their charitable works in tough times, or even trim the workforce. In the throes of the Great Recession, even companies with a social conscience often did that. Who could justify million-dollar gifts for charity when employees are being laid off?
But this is different. This is despicable behavior, and it’s widespread. If the same acts were committed by an individual, that person would likely find himself in prison. Corporations typically face only the loss of cash. Don’t worry, they’ll make more.
The U.S. Supreme Court is inching toward full personhood for corporations — see Citizens United vs. FEC, which granted them freedom of speech. Perhaps it’s time they were punished like people, too.
When the Liberal Party of Canada voted at their biennial convention to legalize and regulate marijuana, some joked that the 77 per cent who backed the non-binding resolution must have inhaled.
As a criminal lawyer who defends average people who face charges simply for seeking relief from chronic pain or other illnesses from the drug, I say the Liberals are on the right track in adopting the ideology that marijuana should be legalized and taxed -- just like tobacco.
Around 400 high profile doctors, medical researchers and scientists recently joined forces to form lobby group Friends of Science in Medicine (FSM in order to have "alternative medicine" degrees removed from Australian universities.
Chiropractic, osteopathy, Chinese medicine, naturopathy, iridology, kinesiology, reflexology, homeopathy and aromatherapy are some of the courses on their blacklist.
The issue has had significant media coverage, but one question has failed to be properly answered.
Why is a group of prestigious doctors and scientists who have the backing of the most profitable industry in the world according to Fortune 500 – the pharmaceutical industry – targeting a few poorly-funded natural medicine courses?
The official line of the group is that these "alternative medicines" are making Australia look bad and "trashing" the universities' reputation. But is that really the reason? With all the countries and all the universities in the world that provide alternative medicines?
A similar move was made in the UK recently – the British will no longer be able to study certain natural medicine degrees – this does not include chiropractic or osteopathy – at publicly-funded universities from this year. Yet natural medicine has been utilised across Asia and Europe for thousands of years.
The United States and Canada are pioneers of chiropractic as we see it today, providing university courses long before they were ever offered in Australia. Also, nearly 85 per cent of US medical schools offer elective courses in alternative medicines.
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO , 80 per cent of the world's population relies on natural therapies. The figures in Australia are much the same.
So why Australia? What is FSM so worried about?
The group seems to be particularly concerned about an increase in chiropractic courses after it was announced recently that Central Queensland University would be offering a new chiropractic science degree. The move could also be partly to do with the ruling in 2010 that all chiropractors in Australia may use the title 'Doctor'.
FSM has accused what it labels as Australia's "lesser" universities that offer alternative medicine courses of "putting the public at risk".
However, this is a difficult notion to fathom when you compare the tiny number of injuries inflicted on natural medicine patients compared to the hundreds of thousands of deaths recorded each year due to medical errors.
WHO estimates that one in 10 hospital admissions leads to an adverse event while one in 300 admissions leads to death. WHO puts medical errors as among the top 10 killers in the world. According to the US's Institute of Medicine, preventable medical errors kill 98,000 people in the US alone each year and injure countless more.
One of the group's biggest complaints, according to FSM co-founder Emeritus Professor John Dwyer from the University of NSW, is that natural medicine "doesn't strive to be tested". He says that modern medicine is "totally devoted" to taking an "evidence-based approach" and "do good science and do good research into the things we do to people".
The argument that modern medicine is evidence-based as opposed to other types of medicine is an argument that is often used by medical lobbyists, and tends to be generally accepted by the public. However, according to a report by a panel of experts assembled by the prestigious Institute of Medicine, "well below half" of medical care in the US is based on or supported by adequate evidence.
According to the report, between 1993 and 2004 there was a more than 80 per cent increase in the number of medications prescribed to Americans. The panel believes this boom in pharmaceuticals is outpacing the rate at which information on their effectiveness can be generated. "If trends continue, the ability to deliver appropriate care will be strained and may be overwhelmed," the report concluded.
What FSM fails to recognise is that natural medicine courses taught at universities incorporate a much higher level of evidence-based studies, such as health science and human physiology, than if they were to be taught outside of a university.
The Australian universities that have been criticised have all defended their courses, saying they are very much evidence and science-based.
In naturopathy, for example, on top of herbal medicine and nutrition, students also learn the same things that a physiotherapist, medical doctor or nurse learn. As well as chiropractic studies, chiropractors study biology, physiology, neuroscience, anatomy and pathology, for example. These are all scientific studies.
Acting head of RMIT's Health Sciences School Dr Ray Myers has defended its programs as "evidence-based education and practice", saying clinical research of natural medicine treatments are funded by the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC .
If FSM really was so worried about public safety they would not be trying to exclude natural medicine from universities where they are taught with much more of a medical focus. Graduates of these courses are much more likely to refer patients to medical doctors when necessary.
As Nick Klomp, dean of the science faculty at Charles Sturt University, points out, thousands of practitioners already provide alternative medicine and they are very much in demand. "I could ignore them or I could train them better," he said. "We actually create graduates who are much better health care providers. It's all about evidence based, science based."
The other question to ask is just how representative the group is of Australian doctors. Dr Wardle, a NHMRC Research Fellow at the University of Queensland's School of Population Health conducted a survey of every rural GP in NSW and found a third did not refer to alternative medicine providers, a third were incredibly open to it, and a third would refer patients to practitioners that they knew achieved results.
The Australian Medical Association president has withdrawn his support from the lobby group. A number of researchers and doctors have also pulled out of FSM reportedly saying they were not aware of the full picture.
Many Australian medical doctors recognise their limits and refer to natural providers when necessary. However, others continue to believe that modern medicine – which is only 100 years old – is the only way of curing pain.
Natural therapies have been used for more than 10,000 years, and so they deserve a place in society, in Australian universities, and even in modern medicine. According to Australian trauma and general surgeon Dr Valerie Malka, former director of trauma services at Westmead Hospital, while modern medicine is revolutionary when it comes to surgery, particularly in emergencies, for pretty much everything else, traditional, natural or alternative medicine is much more effective.
She says in particular, modern medicine is completely unable to treat or cure chronic illness. Rather than focusing on symptom control, natural medicines work on the body's ability to heal the cause of the illness while modern medicine suppresses the body's healing mechanism with drugs that attack the body's natural defence mechanisms, throwing the immune system out of whack.
Dr Malka believes the attack on natural medicine has more to do with the threat to modern medicine's power base as well as its "unhealthy relationship" with the "trillion-dollar pharmaceutical industry".
This is not the first time natural medicines have been attacked by the medical industry.
Alternative healthcare professionals such as chiropractors, naturopaths, and midwives have been targeted by the American Medical Association (AMA for nearly a century, in spite of a federal court injunction against the AMA in 1987 for illegally trying to create a monopoly in the healthcare market.
Up until 1983, the AMA had held that it was unethical for MDs to associate with "unscientific practitioners" and they labelled chiropractic "an unscientific cult". They also had a committee on "quackery" which challenged what it considered to be unscientific forms of healing. Five chiropractors including Chester Wilk sued the AMA, claiming that the committee was established specifically to undermine chiropractic.
Wilk won the case, with Judge Susan Getzendanner ruling that the AMA had engaged in an unlawful conspiracy in restraint of trade "to contain and eliminate the chiropractic profession," also saying that the "AMA had entered into a long history of illegal behaviour".
If you look at the history of attacks on natural healthcare providers over the last 100 years, it is difficult not to associate this attack by FSM as the latest attempt to influence the public into believing that natural medicine is, as it says, "quackery" by spreading propaganda that most of the time is simply not true.
"It's just extraordinary that such undisciplined nonsense is being taught in universities around Australia," Mr Dwyer has said.
Why does this group feel that it has the right to talk this way about natural medicines that are ages old and used by 80 per cent of people across the world?
If FSM really was concerned about patient care and safety in Australia, then perhaps it would investigate medical practices which, unfortunately, seriously injure and kill thousands of people every year, rather than target natural medicine.
Sarah Schwager is an Australian journalist currently working in South America. View her full profile
here.
- Obama Administration Said Set to Release Corporate Tax-Rate Plan Today (
Bloomberg,
WSJ
- Greece races to meet bail-out demands (
FT
- IAEA ‘disappointed’ in Iran nuclear talks (
FT
- Hilsenrath: Fed Writes Sweeping Rules From Behind Closed Doors (
WSJ
- Fannie-Freddie Plan, Sweden FSA, Trader Suspects, CDO Lawsuit: Compliance (
Bloomberg
- Bank of England’s Bean Says Greek Deal Doesn’t End Disorderly Outcome Risk (
Bloomberg
- Greece Second Bailout Plan an ‘Important Step,’ Treasury’s Brainard Says (
Bloomberg
- Shanghai Eases Home Purchase Restrictions (
Bloomberg
- Australian foreign minister resigns (
WaPo
- Osborne urged to cut taxes on business (
FT
- Gillard Backed by ‘Vast Majority’ of Government, Shorten Says (
Bloomberg
Overnight Media Summary
WSJ
* The Obama administration will propose lowering the top income-tax rate for corporations to 28 percent from 35 percent, but would raise overall tax revenue by eliminating dozens of deductions in an effort to restructure corporate taxes.
* The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau said it will target bank overdraft fees, aiming to help consumers avoid unexpected charges.
* Greece's bailout and debt deal will leave it with a huge debt burden and presents implementation challenges that may derail the program and prevent a return to growth.
* Citigroup is facing a multibillion-dollar write-down as it begins unwinding its minority investment in the Morgan Stanley Smith Barney brokerage.
* Johnson & Johnson picked Alex Gorsky to be its next chief executive. He will take over from longtime leader William Weldon in April.
* A federal judge dismissed a foreign bribery case against 16 business people arrested in a sting involving a phony military contract as the Justice Department quit the case after two trial setbacks.
* Beer heavyweights including Anheuser-Busch InBev NV , on the hunt for assets in faster-growing markets, are examining a possible purchase of the owner of Czech lager Staropramen in a deal that could be valued at as much as $3 billion, according to people familiar with the matter.
FT
WELLS FARGO TO BUY ENERGY LOAN PORTFOLIO
Wells Fargo has agreed to buy an energy loan portfolio from BNP Paribas with a historical value of $11 billion.
http://link.reuters.com/zyc76s
BC PARTNERS RAISES 6.5 BLN EUROS FOR NEW DEALS
London-based buy-out firm BC Partners has completed one of the largest private equity capital raisings since the global financial crisis by collecting 6.5 billion euros ($8.62 billion for its latest European fund.
http://link.reuters.com/bad76s
GREEK RACE TO UNLOCK BAILOUT
The Greek government is racing to complete a lengthy checklist of reforms demanded by international lenders before the end of February to unlock a 130 billion euros bailout agreed in the early hours of Tuesday after months of high-stakes bargaining.
http://link.reuters.com/cad76s
UK POLICE INVESTIGATE THREADNEEDLE ROGUE TRADE ATTEMPT
Police in London are investigating a suspected $150 million trading fraud attempted by a former trader at the British investment house Threadneedle.
http://link.reuters.com/dad76s
UK'S OSBORNE URGED TO CUT TAXES ON BUSINESS
British finance minister George Osborne has come under renewed pressure from some members of Britain's ruling Conservative Party to cut business taxes and simplify labour laws in next month's budget.
http://link.reuters.com/fad76s
WELDON TO STEP DOWN AS J&J CHIEF
William Weldon will retire as chief executive of Johnson & Johnson, marking an end to a tenure that has been marred by an embarrassing string of product recalls.
http://link.reuters.com/gad76s
SINGER CHURCH SET TO SETTLE HACKING CASE
Singer Charlotte Church is on the verge of settling her phone-hacking case against the News of the World, raising the prospect that Rupert Murdoch's newspaper group will face no High Court trial over the scandal, it emerged on Tuesday.
http://link.reuters.com/had76s
M&B HOMES IN ON CHIEF EXECUTIVE
Mitchells & Butlers has drawn up a shortlist of three candidates to be chief executive after the job was spurned by three high-profile industry executives amid concerns at the influence wielded by the pub group's dominant shareholder, Joe Lewis.
http://link.reuters.com/jad76s
MAZDA PLANS $2.1 BILLION CAPITAL RAISING
Mazda, the Japanese carmaker, is planning to raise about 170 billion yen ($2.1 billion in capital to expand its production network overseas, according to people familiar with the matter.
http://link.reuters.com/kad76s
NYT
* President Obama will ask Congress to scrub the corporate tax code of dozens of loopholes and subsidies to reduce the top rate to 28 percent, down from 35 percent, while giving preferences to manufacturers that would set their maximum effective rate at 25 percent, a senior administration official said on Tuesday.
* Even after European leaders appeared to have averted a chaotic default by Greece with an eleventh-hour deal for aid, worries persist that a debt disaster on the Continent has merely been delayed.
* A year before recalling an artificial hip, an executive at Johnson & Johnson reported in an internal e-mail that the Food and Drug Administration had refused to approve the device, after reviewing company studies that showed it had failed prematurely in "significant" numbers, requiring repeat surgeries for patients.
* William C. Weldon, who presided over Johnson & Johnson during one of the most tumultuous periods in its history, will step down as chief executive in April, the company announced Tuesday.
* Taxpayers have advanced almost $50 million in legal payments to defend former executives of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in the three years since the government rescued the giant mortgage companies, a regulatory analysis has found.
* The holidays turned out to be a lot brighter at the high end, judging by the results of four major retailers who reported earnings on Tuesday.
Walmart, Macy's, Home Depot and Saks Fifth Avenue all reported sales increases for their fourth quarters ending in January. But while Walmart had to lower prices so aggressively that it hurt its profit, retailers focusing on higher-income customers crowed about the solid prices those shoppers paid.
* The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is beginning an inquiry into how banks levy overdraft fees they charge customers who bounce checks or withdraw more than they have in their accounts using debit cards or automated teller machines, the head of the agency said Tuesday.
European Economic Update
- Eurozone PMI Composite for February 49.7 – lower than expected. Consensus 50.5. Previous 50.4.
- Eurozone PMI Manufacturing for February 49.0 – lower than expected. Consensus 49.4. Previous 48.8.
- Eurozone PMI Services for February 49.4 – lower than expected. Consensus 50.6. Previous 50.4.
- Eurozone Industrial New Orders n.s.a. for December -1.7% y/y – higher than expected. Consensus -2.8% y/y. Previous -2.7% y/y. Revised -2.5% y/y.
- Sweden Unemployment rate 8.0% - higher than expected. Consensus 7.9%. Previous 7.1%.
- Norway Unemployment rate (AKU 3.3% - lower than expected. Consensus 3.4%. Previous 3.4%.
- Italy CPI (NIC incl. tobacco for January 0.3% m/m 3.2% y/y – in line with expectations. Consensus 0.3% m/m 3.2% y/y. Previous 0.3% m/m 3.2% y/y.
- Italy CPI-EU Harmonized for January -1.8 m/m 3.4% y/y – in line with expectations. Consensus -1.8% m/m 3.4% y/y. Previous -1.8% m/m 3.4% y/y.
- Iceland Wage Index 0.0% m/m 9.1% y/y. Previous 0.3% m/m 9.2% y/y.
- Germany PMI Manufacturing 50.1 – lower than expected. Consensus 51.5. Previous 51.0.
- Germany PMI Services 52.6 – lower than expected. Consensus 53.9. Previous 53.7.
- France CPI – EU Harmonised -0.4% m/m 2.6% y/y – lower than expected. Consensus -0.2% m/m 2.7% y/y. Previous 0.4% m/m 2.7% y/y.
- France Consumer Price Index -0.4% m/m 2.3% y/y – lower than expected. Consensus -0.2% m/m 2.5% y/y. Previous 0.4% m/m 2.5% y/y.
- France PMI Manufacturing 50.2 – higher than expected. Consensus 49.0. Previous 48.5.
- France PMI Services 50.3 – lower than expected. Consensus 52.0. Previous 52.3.
- Russia Gold & Forex Reserve USD 504.4B. Previous 509.1B.
- Czech Republic PPI (Industrial 1.0% m/m 4.1% y/y – higher than expected. Consensus 0.9% m/m 4.2% y/y. Previous 0.1% m/m 4.6% y/y.
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