First it was heroin. Next, it was fentanyl-laced heroin. Then it was fentanyl. Now it’s xylazine-laced fentanyl. Will nitazenes be next? Will policymakers ever learn that the Iron Law of Prohibition cannot be repealed?
Policy & Ethics
Gender detransitioning – reversing your transition – is rare, in that less than one percent of persons choose to detransition. Related lawsuits are even rarer; so far, only two cases have been filed in the U.S. and a few in England. But the public reaction couldn’t be more different on both sides of the Atlantic.
This body is trying to require all physicians to force-taper Oregon patients on prescribed opioids to less than 90 MME per day, or transition them to Buprenorphine. The Board should resign or be fired.
Does masking reduce the transmission of SARS-CoV-2? The Cochrane Collaboration tried to analyze the messy evidence and re-ignited an incendiary political debate. What conclusion should we draw from their findings? There's lots of misinformation out there; there's also rampant misinformation about misinformation. Don't be fooled by either of them.
The recent Office of Science and Technology Policy report demonstrates that the federal government is not serious about feeding the country or developing a strong bioeconomy. The White House’s assessment contains decades-old unworkable initiatives. So we ask: Is the administration moving a ‘bold’ and ‘innovative’ agenda – or one simply focusing on climate initiatives, while China advances its bioeconomy?
The shortage of Adderall, an important medication used to treat ADHD – attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder – is a story of supply, demand, the invisible hand of market forces. It’s also about a bureaucracy focused on regulation rather than outcome. It has all the hallmarks of the opioid crisis. We have learned nothing.
From the same folks who instigated the class action litigation over Zantac, we now have a new class action suit – this one claiming that dry shampoos contain dangerous levels of benzene, a known carcinogen.
The National Physician Residency Match pairs about-to-graduate medical students and some already graduated, to residency training programs, a necessary step in gaining a medical license. Physicians’ “Match madness” just ended, and self-congratulations and hand-wringing were found throughout the media.
The Modernizing Opioid Treatment Access Act: Good Step in the Right Direction. It Should Go Further.
While they could have gone even further, Senators Markey and Paul, and Representatives Norcross and Bacon deserve praise for stepping outside the box to address opioid addiction and overdoses.
Media coverage of the Ohio train derailment focused, understandably, on the personal tragedies of the town’s citizens. There was also considerable confusion about the chemicals' impact on the community's health. Yet there has been virtually no focus on the regulations already in place and why they weren’t more effective.
In response to Tranq – a horrifying "new" drug sweeping the nation – Kolodny, America's "drug expert," proposes a solution. And gets it all wrong.
Here's an idea. Let's say that you suffer from chronic constipation and that none of the usual stuff works. Might you benefit from something that sounds a bit odd - a capsule that is preactivated, swallowed, and then begins vibrating in your colon? Nope, it's not something from a Mel Brooks movie. It's real. Welcome to another unwanted chapter of the J-Man Chronicles!