Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

The Collapse of the FDA

nytimes.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

51–60 of 220 posts

Re: The Collapse of the FDA

#51

Post by AdieuToLogic »

terminalshort wrote: post #46
AdieuToLogic wrote: post #44

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Should allow pharma to sell drugs to the market. This was the case pre-FDA. IIRC, that is how heroin was sold in drug stores. See also OxyContin[0]. > Allow people to sue if they are harmed. So you advocate a costly post-harm remediation instead of a preemptive solution provided by governmental regulations? > Do not care about a government agency preventing access to new drugs. See previous reference to heroin once…

> So you advocate a costly post-harm remediation instead of a preemptive solution provided by governmental regulations Absolutely. Such solutions tend to be much cheaper and more effective. It's how we deal with the vast majority of problems for a good reason. If we sold oxycontin over the counter we would have much less of an overdose problem than we do. Would also take a lot of stress off our emergency medical care…

>> So you advocate a costly post-harm remediation instead of a preemptive solution provided by governmental regulations

> Absolutely. Such solutions tend to be much cheaper and more effective.

This is not supported by any credible analysis I am aware of, as the cost of rectifying a problem post hoc has historically been far greater than preventing it in the first place.

> If we sold oxycontin over the counter we would have much less of an overdose problem than we do.

This assertion is demonstrably wrong and could easily be categorized as insulting to people struggling with OxyContin addiction.

Re: The Collapse of the FDA

#52

Post by vel0city »

alejohausner wrote: post #49
kevin_thibedeau wrote: post #33

I wish someone would convince RFK that prescription drug ads are bad for his brand of quack medicine. We could at least get rid of that societal cancer while the rest is torn down.

I’ve heard RFK say that it’s hard to ban TV ads for drugs. They are “speech” according to the 1st amendment, or something like that. Too bad. News broadcasts are full of those ads, and hence TV journalists are loath to investigate the people that pay their salaries.

There's loads of precedent pointing to commercial speech such as marketing as having some specific carve outs on the right to free speech. After all we have limits on tobacco marketing and food labeling requirements.

Re: The Collapse of the FDA

#53

Post by kelseyfrog »

sorcerer-mar wrote: post #20
dmm wrote: post #9

Reading "Bottle of Lies" by Katherine Eban, I'd argue that the collapse of the FDA was well underway before the current administration. The FDA was completely unable to regulate overseas drug manufacturers, resulting in many, many problems. Sincere attempts to inspect overseas drug makers with random inspections universally results in shutdowns, which cause politically unpopular drug shortages, making enforcement pol…

Sooo that sounds like there's a whole lot of ways for it to get way, way, way worse. The existence of problems does not imply there cannot be more plentiful, more diverse, and more severe problems in the near future.

If Chesterton's fence doesn't have a working latch, then it's appropriate to remove it entirely.

Re: The Collapse of the FDA

#54

Post by satvikpendem »

kelseyfrog wrote: post #53
sorcerer-mar wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sooo that sounds like there's a whole lot of ways for it to get way, way, way worse. The existence of problems does not imply there cannot be more plentiful, more diverse, and more severe problems in the near future.

If Chesterton's fence doesn't have a working latch, then it's appropriate to remove it entirely.

Or fix the latch? Or was this a sarcastic comment?

Re: The Collapse of the FDA

#55

Post by SV_BubbleTime »

nine_zeros wrote: post #35
monero-xmr wrote: post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Government agencies that spend massive amounts of tax dollars while accomplishing nothing and being net-negative for society. Anyone who has worked for or dealt with the government for extended periods of time will clearly know how fucked it is

> Government agencies that spend massive amounts of tax dollars while accomplishing nothing and being net-negative for society. Anyone who has worked for or dealt with the government for extended periods of time will clearly know how fucked it is This is only true of republican governments. Republican-led governments are truly appalling in their spending, and wasteful tax cuts. Democrat governments are far far more e…

[flagged]

Re: The Collapse of the FDA

#57

Post by satvikpendem »

rabeener wrote: post #56
satvikpendem wrote: post #54

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Or fix the latch? Or was this a sarcastic comment?

https://fs.blog/chestertons-fence/

I know what Chesterton's fence is, my question was specifically about why one would throw it away if the latch doesn't work.

Re: The Collapse of the FDA

#58

Post by reactordev »

js8 wrote: post #24
reactordev wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I was just saying this today. I’m originally from the DC bubble. It’s been bad for a LONG time. Entire companies designed to fight and win government contracts so that they can milk the government until retirement. SAIC comes to mind. These agencies haven’t been able to do their actual jobs in ages. Trump is doing what he said he was going to do (unpopular as that is) and we’ll have to figure out how to build back be…

While seeing opportunity in a crisis is a good coping mechanism, that doesn't mean it's a good idea to destroy first and rebuild from scratch. (It is however one of the core unjustified beliefs of free market fundamentalists.) It actually seems to be true more generally, good coping mechanisms are not particularly efficient in the absence of crisis. Another example: People who lived through a dictatorship, which dest…

Like I said, I don’t agree with his tactics. Burning the bridges isn’t smart.

I do think a lot of DC fat is coping mechanisms. The bureaucracy is so slow to respond to change, change that this community loves, and needs a redo. Reorg. Whatever.

I get why my opinion is so downvoted but the reality is the reality.

Re: The Collapse of the FDA

#59

Post by j16sdiz »

GregDavidson wrote: post #47
stevenAthompson wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"We do our peers, countrymen, students, and children a grave disservice by admonishing them to think for themselves without also giving them the critical thinking tools to do so, for in so doing we foster a culture where "independent thought" is equated with "contrarian thought". This gives rise to an anti-intellectual, anti-science paradigm that supports an idea not because it meets a basic standard of evidence, but…

Important quote! Citation?

stevenAthompson from HN.

Re: The Collapse of the FDA

#60

Post by reactordev »

sneilan1 wrote: post #30
reactordev wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I was just saying this today. I’m originally from the DC bubble. It’s been bad for a LONG time. Entire companies designed to fight and win government contracts so that they can milk the government until retirement. SAIC comes to mind. These agencies haven’t been able to do their actual jobs in ages. Trump is doing what he said he was going to do (unpopular as that is) and we’ll have to figure out how to build back be…

Sorry, this SAIC? https://www.saic.com/ Just curious which SAIC you are referring to.

Would you prefer Leidos?
Post reply on HN