Drug company consultants — including one scientist with a patent on a smoking-cessation gum — sit on the government’s advisory panel regarding tobacco regulation. I wrote about these conflicts of interest three weeks back:
Camel Orbs may or may not be a real health risk, but they are certainly competition to Nicorette’s gums and lozenges — and Henningfield’s patented gum. Yet our government will count on Henningfield and others in the pay of Nicorette’s maker for counsel on how to regulate Camel’s product.
Today, the Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington picked up the torch:
Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) sent a letter to the Inspector General (IG) of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) asking for an investigation into two appointments made by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to the Tobacco Products Scientific Advisory Committee (TPSAC). The two members, Drs. Neal Benowitz and Jack Henningfield, have financial conflicts of interest based on their ties to pharmaceutical companies that make smoking cessation products.
