|
(NaturalNews) Senator Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, has asked the inspector general at the Health and Human Services Department to investigate whether the FDA conspired with drug maker Merck to discredit the safety findings of FDA drug safety official Dr. David Graham.
In a letter to Inspector General Daniel Levinson, Grassley charges that documentation of the FDA and Merck shows the two joined forces to discredit Graham, who "blew the whistle" on the painkiller Vioxx, which Merck voluntarily withdrew from the market following a study that revealed its potential dangers.
"It is no secret that Dr. Graham was and is a critic of the FDA," Grassley says. "However, that does not mean that the FDA should scheme with drug sponsors to discredit its own employees." Grassley says the FDA must maintain a "clear, bright line between the regulated and the regulator."
Susan Bro, spokeswoman for the FDA, had no comment, though Merck -- which is currently facing more than 16,000 Vioxx-related lawsuits -- issued a statement saying that it has the "right to express our views when we believe information others have presented is not fair and balanced."
However, Grassley alleges that the campaign waged against Graham by Merck and the FDA goes far beyond the drug maker's right to "express (its) views," citing as evidence handwritten notes made by a Merck employee who documented an Oct. 13, 2004 conversation with an FDA official who mentioned an "opportunity to get (the) message out" on Graham.
In a May 2006 deposition, Graham said he was "quite shocked" to learn of some of the alleged smear campaign tactics waged against him.
###
Related Articles
• Merck litigation strategy - destroy expert witnesses
• Leaked documents show Merck knew of Vioxx dangers, yet hid them for years
• Merck Caught in Massive Scientific Fraud as In-House Authors were Disguised as Independent Scientists (opinion)
• Merck caught in scandal to bury Vioxx heart attack risks, intimidate scientists and keep pushing dangerous drugs; Vioxx lawsuits now forming
• Merck Committed Scientific Fraud in Delays, Distortions of Vytorin Drug Trial (opinion)
 |
Additional Resources:
Merck
the FDA
Big Pharma
|
Take Action: Support NaturalNews.com
Email this article to a friend
Share this article on: NewsVine | digg | del.icio.us
Permalink to this article: http://www.NaturalNews.com/019728.html
Reprinting this article: Non-commercial OK, cite NaturalNews.com with clickable link.
|
 |
 |
Receive our Natural Health Newsletter for FREE
Subscribe now (it's free!) to win. We randomly choose a subscriber each month to send $100 in eco-home products or a RealGoods.com gift certificate (our choice). Plus, you'll receive FREE news, articles and action alerts from NaturalNews.com editors and join over 800,000 monthly readers who report extraordinary health improvements after becoming a subscriber!
- Receive breaking news alerts on natural health solutions, renewable energy, the environment, global warming and more.
- Receive a free instant download of our $29 Secret Sources guide that reveals top sources for little-known health and diet solutions.
|
|
 |
 |
Recommended Special Report:
Seven Words that can Change the World
by Joseph R. Simonetta
Read this special report now...
"Seven Words That Can Change the World reveals the astonishing, simple truths that have the power to forever transform our world for the better while freeing our minds from the enslavement of limiting beliefs. This is not a text for the simple-minded; it is a guiding philosophy for the mindful, intelligent few who are wise enough to seek out -- and recognize -- the higher simplicities of truly purposeful living." - Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, editor of NaturalNews.com
|
More on NaturalNews.com:
• Streaming Health Ranger Videos
• CounterThink Cartoons
• FREE Special Reports
• Podcasts
|
 |
|