Last week it was doctors promoting drugs for companies in which they own stock. Then, there was the story questioning the peer review process used by medical journals. Yesterday there was the story of universities misusing NIH research funds.
A study by the University of Minnesota and HealthPartners Research Foundation found that more than half of the scientists used NIH grant money of $20 billion a year - that's our tax money, folks - on projects for which no grant money was designated by NIH.
Cornell is the example used in the article in the Wall Street Journal. They paid the NIH $4.4 million to settle charges, such as phantom projects, phantom nurses, phantom patients, using grant money for other than the intended purposes.
Last year it was the priesthood that was off its pedestal. This year it looks as though the medical profession will soon be joining the priesthood.
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