Test Orphans

Startling stuff from James Kushiner over at Mere Comments:

Last year we posted a link to the writing of investigative writer Liam Scheff, who wrote about the use of orphans in New York as subjects for testing AIDS drugs. We received a couple of complaints or warnings not to take sides on some of the critiques of AIDS research and AIDs reporting in Africa.

Now, it seems that "The Department of Health and Human Services Office of Human Research Protections investigating the clinical trials on Black and Hispanic orphans at New York's Incarnation Children's Center (ICC) has found that the National Institute of Health (NIH) and Columbia Presbyterian Hospital acted unethically." . . .

I hate to say it, but I think we have a big problem that isn't going to go away anytime soon. The forces that are driving scientists, research companies, drug companies, for profit seem to be out of control. Is there any firm line that they will not cross? Repeatedly we are told that we have to trust our highly-educated and highly-trained professional researchers, who are seeking cures (and high profit drugs for companies), that they will use "the highest ethical standards."

Link.