home
articles on freedom of choice
For example, they introduce the American Medical Association and its infamous Committee on Quackery and suggest that the AMAs opposition to chiropractors ended with a 1987 ruling against the AMA and several other professional societies after an 11-year lawsuit brought by Chester Wilk et al., who charged that the organizations had engaged in a conspiracy to boycott chiropractors.
Folks, Wilk did more than just charge that the AMA had conspired. He proved it. But to the authors of this report, it's merely a charge, not at all conclusive. Wilk's charges of conspiracy were upheld last month by the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals which agreed with Judge Getzendanner that the AMA violated the Sherman Act by conducting an illegal boycott.
The authors inaccurately portray unconventional cancer treatments as more expensive than orthodox treatments by presenting costs associated with treatment for melanoma and stomach cancer. They rely on a 1988 Medicare report to suggest that in. tial treatment charges in the first three months after diagnosis are a mere $10,000. Average monthly expenses thereafter are said to be a mere $235.
This minimizes the true impact c cancer, which is estimated to cost more than $75 billion annually. In fact, a recent survey conducted by the American Society of Clinical Oncology found that treatment for acute leukemia or lymphoma treated with chemotherapy resulted in an average cost of over $8,300 for only 12 days in the hospital. Thatıs 12 days, not three months. The cost of dying of cancer is now estimated to be well over $80,000 per person.
The OTA report introduces the American Council on Science and Health (ACSH) as ³a group that seeks to protect consumers by providing them with valid scientific information.² ACSH seeks to protect the pharmaceutical and chemical industries by providing distorted information to consumers. Alar is good for you. Asbestos: what a great thing. So much for accuracy in reporting.
Congress is going to have to decide if OTA has presented a fair and accurate picture of the conflict between the conventional and unconventional cancer therapies. OTAıs reputation is on the line.