But payments are not always made public and critics say voluntary industry transparency initiatives don’t go far enough Royal colleges in the UK have received more than £9 million in marketing payments from drug and medical devices companies since 2015, but do not always disclose the payments publicly, finds an ...
Review suggests that costs tend to rise and quality falls at acquired healthcare providers Private equity ownership of healthcare services such as nursing homes and hospitals is associated with harmful impacts on costs and quality of care, suggests a review of the latest evidence published by The BMJ today. No consistently beneficial ...
Patients need better treatments, not just more of the same, says expert New drugs are often used not only for one disease (first approved indication) but also for other diseases (supplemental indications). But a study published by The BMJ today finds that less than half of approved first indications for new drugs ...
Did new antibiotic meet the legal standard for approval? Are US drug regulatory rules being bypassed? Drugs approved in the US require “substantial evidence” that they are effective. But an investigation by The BMJ into the recent approval of the antibiotic Recarbrio from Merck suggests that these standards are being ...
Pfizer says vaccine is safe and effective, but trial results prompt calls for further analysis of data and post-approval monitoring Experts have called for further scrutiny of a new Pfizer vaccine given during pregnancy to prevent respiratory infection in infants, after trials of a similar GSK vaccine were stopped after ...
Certain types and applications pose “existential threat to humanity,” they warn An international group of doctors and public health experts have joined the clamour for a moratorium on AI research until the development and use of the technology are properly regulated. Despite its transformative potential for society, including in medicine ...
Accepted clinical practice, but no difference in outcomes in absence of clinical complications The accepted clinical practice of using beta blockers over the long term to curb the risk of further heart attacks or death doesn’t seem to be warranted in patients who don’t have heart failure, suggests a large ...
New deal will make it harder for the UK to regulate tobacco and alcohol or ban products like those containing harmful pesticides The UK’s decision to join one of the world’s largest free trade agreements, known as the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement on Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), poses a major threat ...
UK doctors’ regulator has nearly £870,000 invested in fast food or soft drink companies “This is no different to investing in tobacco companies,” argues GP Doctors have criticised the General Medical Council (GMC) after The BMJ found it had investments in fast food firms, pharmaceutical companies, private medical insurers and ...
Most industry spending is not on research and development Government action needed to encourage research and development focused on public health priorities High drug prices are not justified by industry’s spending on research and development (R&D), argue experts in The BMJ today. Aris Angelis and colleagues point out that from ...