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From: kfl%mx.lcs.mit.edu@MC.LCS.MIT.EDU
Newsgroups: mod.politics
Subject: Medicine
Message-ID: <12235887199.16.MCGREW@RED.RUTGERS.EDU>
Date: Wed, 3-Sep-86 00:55:50 EDT
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Posted: Wed Sep  3 00:55:50 1986
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     [ I am uncomfortable with the thought of a doctor coming along
    after 5 years and saying, "well, you shouldn't have been taking
    that allergy drug, fella - it causes leprosy!  Gee, I'm sorry, but
    you know, let the buyer beware!" ... -CWM]

  This is the real world.  Drugs do have side effects.  The risks and
benefits of a drug must be weighed by SOMEONE.  I say that someone
should be the person at risk.  You imply it should be doctors and/or
government bureaucrats, and the patient should have no say in the
matter.
  It isn't fair to use the existence of side effects against my
position.  The side effects would be just as great whether the risks
and benefits were weighed by a doctor or by a patient.  In fact, you
never say in your leprosy scenario just who selected that allergy
drug.  I could have used the very same paragraph and said "by the way,
this drug was suggested by the doctor" to bolster MY case.
                                                              ...Keith

[ Clearly, it doesn't matter who suggested the drug: it could be
nobody beyond the ad for the drug ("clears sinuses and whitens teeth",
or whatever).  In a purely libertarian society, the seller of the
drug is within his rights to sell anything to anyone who will buy,
with things balancing out afterward.  A typical rejoinder to
unregulated medicine is that word will get around and the seller will
not be able to sell any more.  This is not so good for the people who
get zapped before word gets around.  Is this such a good thing? - CWM]
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