Predicting the future: Writing the "reform" stories before they do
I saw that there are three lawsuits alleging that Mirapex causes compulsive gambling in some people:
Joe Neglia was a retired government intelligence worker with Parkinson’s disease when he suddenly developed what he calls a gambling habit from hell. . .After losing thousands of dollars playing slot machines . . . Neglia stumbled across an Internet report linking a popular Parkinson’s drug he used with compulsive gambling. “I thought, ‘Oh my God, this must be it,”’ he said. Three days after stopping the drug, Mirapex, “all desire to gamble just went away completely. I felt like I had my brain back.” — from Associated Press, July 12, 2005.
Do “dopamine agonists” — a class of drug used to stimulate dopamine receptors and treat Parkinson’s disease — also stimulate compulsive gambling? That’s the crux of three lawsuits, filed in Minnesota federal court against Boehringer Ingelheim, the maker of Mirapex.
Source: Law Blog - WSJ.com : Claim: Parkinson's Drug Causes Gambling Addiction. Discuss.
Allow me to save you the trouble of reading the inevitable stories about these lawsuits that will be written by the "reform" movement. Here they are, condensed for your convenience:
Blah blah, personal responsibility. Junk science, blah blah, Trial Lawyers, Inc. Grumble, trial bar, loser pays. Blah blah, Benedictin, blah, useful drug. Mel Weiss, grumble, extortionate settlement, blah. Tort tax, loud noises, FDA approval, blah, preemption.