‘On the Wrong Side of History’: What We Heard This Week

“The AMA is violating one of its most ethical principles, ‘Do No Harm,’ by being on the wrong side of history.” — Talisa Hardin, of National Nurses United, during a “Medicare for All” rally at the American Medical Association (AMA) House of Delegates meeting.

“We have now shifted the opioid epidemic to a patient-care crisis.” — Joseph O’Brien, of the National Scoliosis Foundation, speaking at an FDA advisory committee meeting.

“Though we’ve made progress, the face of medicine still fails to match the faces of our patients.” — Patrice Harris, MD, during her inaugural speech as the first African-American woman president of the AMA.

“That is paying down sleep debt in a way that most interventions can’t do.” – Lisa J. Meltzer, PhD, of National Jewish Health in Denver, on delayed school-start times.

“At a time when substance use disorder patients face stigma, rampant discrimination, and potential loss of custody, housing, and employment that threatens their recovery if confidentiality is breached, we must champion their rights.” – Marilyn Heine, MD, of Langhorne, Pennsylvania, on behalf of the AMA women physicians section, during a debate on the accessibility of patients’ drug addiction treatment records.

“It’s too risky to take that chance.” — Emily Pieracci, DVM, of the CDC, on the importance of reporting direct contact with a bat to a healthcare provider due to risk of rabies.

“Let me be clear: Any law or regulation that prevents us from fulfilling our ethical duty to give our patients complete and honest information is unacceptable and will be challenged by the AMA.” — Barbara McAneny, MD, outgoing AMA president, on the “Trump-Pence gag rule.”

“We have been using these drugs for more than 20 years in these patients and have millions and millions of patient-years of use and we have no evidence that they are associated with cancer.” — Johannes Bijlsma, MD, of the University of Utrecht in The Netherlands, on a study showing no cancer risk with TNF inhibitors to treat psoriatic arthritis.

“I think we ought to put a stake in the heart of single-payer.” — Donald Palmisano, MD, former AMA president, during an AMA House of Delegates session.