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Medicare Part D provides coverage for the cost of drugs. It is a complex system with varying out-of-pocket costs. The stakeholders, beneficiaries, insurance companies, manufacturers and the feds are all trying to shift costs to someone else. Two graphs will show the value of Part D to patients and what all the fighting is about.

One would think that in a world where facts can be easily verified, it shouldn't become so polarized. But a new paper in the European Journal for Philosophy of Science argues that polarization is the natural outcome when groups of people disagree. In fact, the authors document a major example of polarization within the scientific community itself.

Researchers, believe it or not, ingested Lego toys to see how quickly they could be, um, excreted. Yes, this actually took place. This "work" was published in a journal.

How can you identify a scientifically ignorant person? Ask him if he's concerned about the health effects of GMOs. If the answer is yes, you've identified somebody who probably couldn't pass an 8th grade science test. Too harsh? Not according to the latest Pew poll. 

Given the rogue nature of one scientist, should we expect "designer babies" to follow?

Our northern neighbor is considering public payment for nearly all pharmaceutical costs. The model makes its assumptions known, its cost and benefit analysis clear, and provides a blend of new taxes to support the plan. If it was not for some academic hand-waving over special needs and interests it might actually be feasible.

Plenty of bad papers are accepted as true because the academic who wrote it is famous. On the flip side, many good papers are never written out of the fear that it could cost an academic his job. So, how about we just eliminate real names and publish papers under fake ones instead? That's the fundamental idea behind a new journal, not-so-subtly called The Journal of Controversial Ideas, set to launch next year. This idea is so good, I wish I'd thought of it first.

There is a growing cottage industry in reporting industry payments to physicians, the implication is that they alter our behavior. Is there any proof?

The CDC's latest report shows dangerously high lead levels in children who live in households that contain spices, herbal remedies, and ceremonial powders -- in other words, the sort of things we associate with alternative medicine and other "natural" or "traditional" practices.

Since anyone can be in a position to be touched by this topic, whether it be for yourself or a loved one, raising awareness can start a worthy dialogue in families. A lot has changed in transplant medicine.

Just as you've been toiling away in preparation for your upcoming feast, we have been toiling away teaching the world about science. Last week, we appeared on the wildly popular Coast to Coast AM and more!

The October DEA National Drug Assessment, which claimed that opioid analgesic pills were doing most of the killing was pure BS. Now there is even more evidence of this, courtesy of New Hampshire. Only 9% of OD deaths were from pills, the rest for heroin and fentanyl. More lies put to rest.

A small study of the Thanksgiving cranberry raises the issue of when science in the public interest transitions from informing to advocacy and then to marketing.

Visits to primary care physicians are down, visits to nurse practitioners are up. And savings are nowhere to be found. Two great business strategists, Clayton Christensen, and Michael Porter provide some understanding.

Dr. Edward Archer believes that nutrition science is not just misguided but actually harmful. That's an extraordinary statement that requires extraordinary evidence. Does he provide it in his latest paper?

Kids are more resilient than you think, but are also magical thinkers. In the absence of direct communication from a parent, they will create their own narrative which can foster greater worry.

There is a reason on planes when going through safety instructions you are advised to put the oxygen mask on yourself before you can assist anyone else. Debunking the "right" way to cope with a diagnosis is crucial to outcomes.

Diabetes + High Deductibles = Delays in Care A study tries to show that this is true, but the evidence is unconvincing

The good news is that African swine fever has nothing to do with swine flu and does not infect humans; the bad news is mostly for pig farmers and ranchers who are facing, as Russian scientists claim, "arguably the most dangerous swine disease worldwide."

It is time to push back over society's chaos-aversion. The price the next generation is paying is too great.

Pretty much everyone is behaving badly in the public sphere as politics is infecting everything. “Johnny made me do it” was not an acceptable argument in childhood, so why would it be now?

The deadliest occupational group for men was "construction and extraction," with a suicide rate of 53.2 per 100,000 in 2015. For women, the deadliest group was "arts, design, entertainment, sports, and media," with a suicide rate of 15.6 per 100,000.

Placebos work, but focusing on their neurobiological effects to make their efficacy palatable to the scientifically inclined misses the point. For social creatures, caring helps to heal, by whatever name you give it.

Macaque monkeys are starting to overrun parts of Florida. Like humans, macaques have their own version of herpes. It doesn't bother the monkeys but is very deadly to humans. Here's why.

The Florida man who was arrested for synthesizing the "Mother of Satan" claims that he was just making fireworks. Uh-huh. Celebrating the Fourth of July early, we suppose? Here, we explain the chemistry behind the explosive.