March 5, 2018. The State of Maryland has many spending priorities and should not be spending millions of dollars for artificial turf fields and playgrounds that can exacerbate our children’s health problems now, and potentially cause them to develop cancer in the years to come. Let’s instead invest in safe, natural playing fields, unless any synthetic alternatives are proven in unbiased research to be as safe and as cost-effective as grass for fields and engineered wood fiber for playgrounds.
Read More »We’re Speaking Out on Health Issues
NCHR scientists and health policy experts provide written and oral statements on a wide range of topics.
Here are many of the ways we have been Speaking Out on Health Policy Issues for the last few years. Whether the topic is legislation intended to cure diseases, proposed bans on BPA or other chemicals that disrupt your hormones, the importance of including women, people of color, and patients over 65 in clinical trials, or many other topics, you’ll gain a better understanding of our evidence-based analyses by reading these letters, statements, and testimony.
Here are the ways we have been Speaking out on Medical Treatments and Products, such as prescription drugs and medical devices that the FDA is considering approving, or is considering taking off the market because of serious risks. Whether the topic is Chantix, Addyi, Yaz, Essure, or medical products you’ve never heard of, you can find out more about what is known and not known about the safety and effectiveness of a wide range of products by looking through this section of our website.
NCHR Comments to USPSTF on Syphilis Screening During Pregnancy
March 5, 2018. The prevention of congenital syphilis and other negative fetal outcomes outweighs the risks of false results or unnecessary treatment with penicillin, especially when screening occurs early in the pregnancy. Overall, we agree with the USPSTF draft recommendation for syphilis screening in pregnant women.
Read More »NCHR Comments at the Risk Communication Advisory Committee on Pregnancy and Lactation Labeling Rule
March 5, 2018. Pregnancy/postpartum represent critical periods for counseling, health promotion, and health maintenance. Providers and patients must engage in informed discussions of benefits, risks, and alternatives in order to achieve shared-decision making. However, uncertainty of drug harms present a unique challenge in the overall picture of risks and benefits.
Read More »NCHR Letter to House Energy and Commerce Committee on Right To Try Legislation
February 22, 2018. Some terminally ill patients are willing to take big risks to have a chance to live longer, and if they want the “right to try” experimental treatments that are undergoing clinical trials, they should be able to do so as long as they are well informed of the risks as well as the possible benefits.
Read More »NCHR Comments to FDA on Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) Product Uses and Labeling Changes
February 15, 2018. It remains unclear whether individual achievement of abstinence is sustainable over time and whether long-term NRT use is more or less beneficial on an individual or population health level. We commend the FDA for addressing their role in developing strategies to evaluate NRT products and labeling. We agree that urgent action is necessary and the FDA should consider science-based approaches to reduce further harm from combustible tobacco products.
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