Tag: health care

Minister strips parental access to children’s health records

Newfoundland parents just got the memo: Once your kid turns 12, the government says you’re no longer automatically entitled to know what’s in their medical records.

A June 19 letter from NL Health Services quietly ended automatic parental access to children’s health information. From age 12 to 15, parents now need the child’s permission to see the records. At 16, the teenager takes full control.

Sarah James Furlong, a concerned parent, took to social media in a bid to raise awareness of the apparent government assault on parental rights. Furlong is calling on parents to contact the Minister of Health, Lela Evans, to reverse the decision.

“I respect children’s rights and understand the importance of privacy,” Furlong said in a Facebook post. “However, I believe parents have a fundamental responsibility to protect, support, and advocate for their children—and that responsibility doesn’t end when a child turns 12.”

The move fits a pattern. Newfoundland and Labrador already lets students in Grade 7 and up change their names and pronouns at school without parental consent. Now the same province is extending that logic into medical records.

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When Published Research Comes Under Fire: Homeopathy Studies Become Battleground in Debate Over Scientific Retractions

What happens when peer-reviewed research produces findings that challenge prevailing scientific assumptions?

The question has surfaced across medicine for decades, from disputes over vaccine safety and nutrition research to debates over cancer treatment. Increasingly, it has also emerged in one of healthcare’s most polarizing fields: homeopathy.

Supporters argue that homeopathy has been unfairly dismissed despite hundreds of published studies examining its effects.

Critics counter that its core principles conflict with established scientific understanding and that studies reporting positive results often fail to withstand rigorous scientific scrutiny.

Behind the public debate lies a deeper question about scientific studies: When published studies are disputed, where is the line between legitimate correction and efforts to remove findings from the scientific record?

‘Retraction is not an appropriate remedy’

That query sits at the center of two high-profile retractions involving homeopathy researchers Dr. Menachem Oberbaum of Israel and Austrian physician Dr. Michael Frass.

Both helped engineer studies that were peer-reviewed, published in respected medical journals and later withdrawn after challenges to their methodology and conclusions.

Oberbaum led a randomized controlled trial published in the European Journal of Pediatrics that examined health outcomes among children during their first 24 months of life.

The study compared homeopathic and conventional treatment approaches and reported fewer illness episodes, fewer sick days, fewer respiratory illnesses and reduced antibiotic use among children receiving homeopathic care while retaining access to conventional medicine.

The findings suggested measurable benefits from a treatment many scientists regard as biologically implausible.

The journal later retracted the paper, citing concerns that the study lacked blinding and placebo controls, conditions editors said increased the risk of bias.

Oberbaum sharply criticized the decision.

“This retraction is, in our view, an example of an academic process that failed to meet even minimal ethical standards,” he told The Defender.

Co-author Dr. Raj Manchanda, chief medical officer at Nehru Homoeopathic Medical College and Hospital in New Delhi, India, argued that the concerns raised against the study should have been addressed through scientific debate rather than retraction. He said the researchers were not informed that a post-publication review process had begun and were given a limited opportunity to respond before the journal withdrew the paper.

Manchanda also disputed the journal’s rationale. He said placebo treatment would have been ethically problematic in children younger than 2 years old and argued that open-label designs are widely accepted when blinding is impractical.

“The methodological issues cited in the retraction were known during peer review,” he said. “Retraction is not an appropriate remedy.”

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Nursing School Owner Pleads Guilty After Issuing Nearly 3,000 Fake Diplomas

Carleen Noreus, who owned two nursing schools in South Florida, has pleaded guilty to her role in a scheme that sold nearly 3,000 fraudulent nursing diplomas, the Department of Justice (DOJ) said in a June 18 statement.

The defendant, 52, from Plantation, Florida, was president of the Carleen Home Health School Inc. in Plantation and vice president of Carleen Home Health School II Inc. in West Palm Beach.

“Noreus conspired with others to sell fraudulent nursing diplomas and educational transcripts to individuals who had not completed the required coursework or clinical training to earn Registered Nurse (RN), Licensed Practical Nurse/Vocational Nurse (LPN/VN), or Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) credentials,” the DOJ said.

“The fraudulent diplomas and transcripts falsely represented that purchasers had successfully completed the academic and clinical requirements of the schools when, in reality, they had not.”

The documents allowed the buyers to take part in national nursing board examinations. Those who passed the exams obtained nursing licenses and employment in the healthcare sector.

In total, Noreus provided 2,956 fraudulent nursing diplomas through her two schools between April 17, 2018, and Oct. 8, 2025. Of the individuals who obtained fake credentials, roughly 2,274 passed the nursing exams, secured licenses, and gained employment in Florida and other parts of the United States. Both institutions have been shut down by state authorities.

The case is part of the second phase of Operation Nightingale, a multi-state law enforcement action launched in January 2023 to arrest individuals who sell fraudulent nursing degree diplomas and transcripts.

The operation led to 25 individuals being charged for the fraud scheme in January 2023. In a Jan. 25, 2023, statement, the DOJ said that more than 7,600 fake nursing diplomas were issued by three nursing schools in South Florida.

On Sept. 15, 2025, the DOJ said that 30 defendants were charged and convicted in 2023 as part of the operation. In addition, the department also announced charges against 12 people in phase two of Operation Nightingale.

Thirteen individuals have been charged in the second phase, including Noreus, the DOJ said in its latest statement. Noreus, who pleaded guilty to conspiracy to launder money and conspiracy to commit wire fraud, faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison for each count.

“Nursing licenses must be earned through education, training, and demonstrated competence, not purchased through fraud,” said U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida Jason A. Reding Quiñones.

“By selling thousands of fraudulent diplomas and transcripts, the defendant undermined the integrity of the nursing profession and our healthcare system. The Southern District of Florida remains committed to holding accountable those who profit by corrupting professional licensing processes and placing the public at risk.”

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FBI Captures Fugitive Who Scammed $1.2 Billion in Medicare Fraud Hiding in the Philippines

Earlier in June, the FBI announced the arrest of a 60-year-old fugitive found residing in the Philippines who fled the United States after failing to appear for his sentencing in connection with pleading guilty to numerous federal charges involving healthcare fraud back in 2019.

FBI Director Kash Patel announced the arrest of 60-year-old Herbert Leon Kimble via social media on June 19th, highlighting how the apprehended fugitive was among those listed on the agency’s “Most Wanted Fraudsters” list.

According to authorities, Kimble had run a Medicare fraud scheme between 2014 and 2019, reportedly amassing $1.2 billion in ill-gotten gains from the scheme which largely targeted elderly beneficiaries. The aforementioned operation reportedly consisted of call centers attempting to convince patients to acquire medically unnecessary orthopedic braces.

In April of 2019, Kimble reportedly pleaded guilty to charges of conspiracy to defraud the United States and mail fraud among other similar charges, reportedly entering into an agreement with the federal government to help build cases “against other co-conspirators” which lasted for years. However, when Kimble was scheduled to appear in court on October 7th, 2024, for sentencing, he reportedly went on the run.

An international manhunt ensued, with authorities suspecting he was residing in Manila, Philippines. After nearly two years on the lam, authorities located the fugitive in the Philippines and he has since been returned to the United States, according to Director Patel.

In Director Patel’s statement regarding Kimble’s arrest, he emphasized, “President Trump set a mandate to end the abuse of hardworking taxpayer money and each and every day this team will be committed to delivering.”

Kimble’s arrest serves as the second high-profile apprehension carried out with respect to the FBI’s Most Wanted Fraudsters in recent weeks, with 47-year-old Said Abdullahi Ereg having been arrested earlier in June after self-surrendering to authorities in Minneapolis. Officials claim Ereg engaged in fraud totaling $4.2 million during the pandemic via submitting false claims of hot meals served to those in need under the Federal Child Nutrition Program.

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FTC sues transgender health group for ‘misleading’ parents about necessity of transitioning kids

The Federal Trade Commission followed through on its nearly year-old pledge to crack down on allegedly false and misleading statements about so-called gender affirming care, suing the World Professional Association for Transgender Health in a Texas federal court known for friendliness to Republican attorneys general.

Texas, Iowa, Alaska and Nebraska joined the FTC in Wednesday’s lawsuit, alleging state-specific harms caused by WPATH, which was notably not cited by Democrats or their witnesses in a recent Senate hearing on pediatric gender medicine.

WPATH developed its Standards of Care 8 “without regard for scientific protocols,” “knows that its recommendations are not supported by scientific evidence or a medical consensus” and yet “misrepresents the risks and benefits of pediatric medical transition” by falsely claiming gender transitions for kids are “lifesaving,” the suit says. 

The Biden administration was caught after the fact successfully pressuring WPATH to remove age minimums in SOC-8, as the suit documents.

The group has an economic interest in pediatric gender transitions, as it advocates expanding insurance coverage to pay for them, “promotes the purchase of its members’ pediatric medical transition services” and financially benefits “by leveraging its position as the de facto authority on transition medicine in the United States,” the suit says.

“WPATH has provided to clinicians the means by which they deceive children and their parents into purchasing pediatric medical transition services,” it says.

The group also hid side effects from gender-affirming treatments, including “mood disturbances,” vaginal and erectile pain and “inability to orgasm” from cross-sex hormones, according to the FTC.

“For decades, the FTC has taken action against entities that make deceptive and unsubstantiated health-related claims,” Chairman Andrew Ferguson said. “The complaint filed today reflects that same long-standing mandate: when an entity makes a claim about a medical treatment, the claim must be truthful, evidence-based and not misleading.”

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Nonconsensual Drug Testing Has Criminalized Tens of Thousands of Pregnant People

New York had the chance to make history in more arenas than basketball this June. Earlier this month, the New York Senate passed the Maternal Health, Dignity and Consent Act, becoming the first legislative chamber in the country to pass legislation that would require informed consent for drug testing of pregnant people. But despite that promising step, the state has once again failed to protect some of its most vulnerable residents from unjust criminalization.

There was a broad coalition of support for this legislation, including researchers, health care providers, and advocates. Several prominent medical and legal groups supported the legislation, including the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and the New York City Bar Association. However, despite the wave of support for the legislation, the victory in the New York Senate was short-lived. The Maternal Health, Dignity and Consent Act died when it didn’t get a vote in the Assembly.

This isn’t the first time this kind of legislation has failed to pass in New York; advocates have been trying for seven years to ban nonconsensual drug testing of pregnant people and have failed every year. This legislation, which has repeatedly been reintroduced only to fail, would have prohibited health care providers in the state from drug testing pregnant or postpartum people and their newborns without explicit verbal and written informed consent. The legislation would have, however, allowed for health care providers to override the ban if there was a significant and immediate medical emergency.

While drug and alcohol use while pregnant can present complications for a newborn, nonconsensual drug testing of pregnant people doesn’t solve the issue at hand. It erodes trust between the health care provider and the patient, a core tenet in any health care relationship. And it does nothing to treat addiction as the disease that it is. This practice has been shown to force pregnant people to delay prenatal care, afraid of the potential criminal consequences of being drug tested against their will. Moreover, nonconsensual drug testing could trap the birthing parent in a web of criminalization that, at best, hinders family bonding, and at worst, irrevocably tears families apart — all because of a disease.

Mandatory, nonconsensual drug testing has put more than 70,000 pregnant people in 21 states into the criminal legal system over a six-year period, according to a landmark study by the Marshall Project, and that is likely a significant undercount. This violation criminalizes pregnant people who are dealing with addiction. It does nothing to treat their addiction or support them and their newborn as they transition to this next phase of life. Instead, for too many pregnant people, it can tear their family apart at the most fragile time and force Child Protective Services (CPS) involvement, which can make recovery for birthing people even less likely in the wake of trauma.

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Radical Woke Mount Sinai Hospital Exposed: DEI, Child Sex Changes & Epstein Ties Prioritized Over Patients

Consumer protection organization Consumers’ Research began a campaign Monday highlighting New York City-based nonprofit Mount Sinai Hospital‘s prioritization of what Consumers’ calls the hospital’s woke and political ideology as well as having what it says are questionable partnerships such as ties to Jeffrey Epstein.

Executive director of Consumers’ Research Will Hild told The Center Square that “Mount Sinai is another example of a nonprofit hospital that has seemingly abandoned its core mission of patient care in favor of a radical political agenda.”

“The hospital has a history of prioritizing radical causes like DEI, child sex-change procedures, and climate activism, and has maintained a deeply troubling and disturbing relationship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, accepting donations and giving him special access to doctors and hospital resources,” Hild said.

“This behavior by nonprofit health systems like Mount Sinai should be investigated for supporting these political agendas at taxpayers’ expense,” Hild said.

Hild told The Center Square that “Consumers’ Research is exposing nonprofit hospitals for using taxpayer dollars and federal revenue streams and benefits to put politics over patients.”

“Taxpayers and elected officials need to be aware that health systems are misusing their resources and these practices need to be examined by lawmakers,” Hild said.

Mount Sinai media relations has not yet responded to The Center Square’s request for comment.

Included in Consumers’ Research’s campaign are a mobile billboard circling the Mount Sinai campus, a website, and “targeted digital around Capitol Hill.”

The mobile billboard displays statements such as Mount Sinai “performed over 130 sex change procedures on kids,” “provides transgender resources for 8-year-olds,” and has ties to Epstein.

Consumers’ Research’s website campaign goes further in depth, showcasing the hospital’s diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, transgender ideology promotion, climate activism and “questionable partnerships.”

According to the campaign, Mount Sinai operates an Office for Health Data, Outcomes, and Engagement Strategy “to promote health equity cultural awareness.”

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Czech Scientists Create Blood Plasma from Hemp Seeds

A protein hidden inside hemp seeds could one day save lives.

Researchers in the Czech Republic are developing a groundbreaking blood plasma substitute made from edestin, a naturally occurring protein found in hemp seeds. While the project is still in the preclinical stage, the concept has already attracted international attention because it could potentially address one of healthcare’s biggest challenges: the global shortage of blood plasma.

For cannabis advocates, it’s yet another reminder that the plant’s value extends far beyond cannabinoids like THC and CBD.

What Exactly Is Blood Plasma?

Blood plasma is the pale-yellow liquid that makes up around 55% of human blood. It transports proteins, nutrients, hormones, and other vital substances throughout the body.

Hospitals rely heavily on plasma during:

  • Severe blood loss
  • Major surgeries
  • Burn treatments
  • Trauma care
  • Various medical conditions require plasma proteins

The problem? Plasma can only be obtained from human donors, leading to persistent supply shortages worldwide. Estimates suggest that demand significantly exceeds available supply in many regions.

The Hemp Connection

The Czech project centers around edestin, a storage protein naturally found in hemp seeds.

Scientists believe edestin possesses several characteristics that make it an interesting candidate for a plasma substitute. The protein’s structure appears highly compatible with mammalian biology, prompting researchers to investigate whether it could mimic some functions traditionally performed by human plasma proteins.

The concept is not entirely new. Czech researchers have been studying the medical potential of hemp-derived edestin for decades, and a patent covering its use as a blood plasma substitute was granted in 2008.

Why This Could Be a Big Deal

If researchers can successfully develop a safe and effective plasma substitute from hemp, the advantages could be enormous.

Unlike donated human plasma, a hemp-derived alternative could potentially be:

  • Produced on a large scale
  • Less dependent on donor availability
  • Easier to store and transport
  • More accessible in developing countries
  • Free from many supply-chain limitations associated with human donations

The Czech startup behind the initiative, Plasma for People, believes the technology could eventually provide a low-cost, plant-based solution for emergency medicine and healthcare systems worldwide.

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Lawmakers Consider Hiking Fees for Filling Prescriptions

Legislation that would potentially increase New York’s pharmacy costs by hundreds of millions of dollars annually is moving toward final passage in Albany’s end-of-session rush.

The bill would require the companies that process prescription drug claims on behalf of most health plans – known as pharmacy benefit managers or PBMs – to pay pharmacies minimum prices for drugs, including a dispensing fee of $10.18 for each prescription filled.

That represents a roughly 400 percent increase over current dispensing fees, which average about $2, which would add about $570 million per year to drug costs for health plans, employers and consumers, according to an estimate from the Pharmaceutical Care Management Association, which represents PBMs.

Sponsored by Assemblyman John McDonald of Albany County, a former pharmacy owner, and Sen. James Skoufis of Orange County, the so-called Patient Access to Pharmacy Act passed the Senate last week by a vote of 58-2.

In the Assembly, the bill moved through the Ways and Means and Rules committees on Thursday, setting it up for a possible vote by the full house before lawmakers adjourn for the summer, which is scheduled to happen Friday.

The Senate previously approved the legislation at the end of last year’s session, but it was never taken up by the Assembly.

The bill mirrors a regulatory proposal put forward by the Department of Financial Services in the fall of 2023 – but which the department dropped in the face of widespread opposition from insurers, employers and labor unions.

In response to that opposition, the bill’s sponsors amended the bill to exempt the “collectively bargained” health plans covering union members. It also does not apply to Medicare or the “self-insured” health plans offered by most large employers, which are exempt from state regulation by federal law.

As a result, the bill primarily targets the health plans purchased from insurance companies by small and medium-sized employers – where it will add to premium costs that are already among the highest in the U.S.

Critics have also argued that the mandate would apply to the state-run Essential Plan and Child Health Plus, although Skoufis said that had not been the intent.

The bill would not affect the state’s Medicaid health plan for the low-income and disabled, because it already pays a dispensing fee of $10.18 – which is the basis for the fee in the McDonald-Skoufis legislation.

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Canadian Lyme sufferers pushed to state euthanasia while the US steps up

Lyme disease is surging across southeastern Ontario as black-legged ticks invade backyards, trails, and parks, driving a sharp rise in infections that health officials can no longer ignore.

Caused by the bacteria Borrelia burgdorferi, Lyme disease often strikes with deceptive early symptoms or no symptoms at all. This includes fatigue, fever, and the telltale bullseye rash, which sometimes doesn’t come until weeks or months later.

Lyme is a stealthy, corkscrew-shaped spiral bacterium that drills deep into tissues, joints, and the nervous system, making it incredibly difficult to detect and hard to eradicate.

Missed early treatment can lead to chronic, debilitating pain, inflammation, and long-term illness. This can be amplified by a lack of initial symptoms or pesky co-infections, including Babesia, Bartonella, Anaplasma, and Ehrlichia.

Due to a high variability of symptoms, there aren’t necessarily textbook presentations, which can complicate diagnoses and treatment leading to more severe or atypical manifestations.

In the United States, they’re confronting this epidemic head-on.

HHS Secretary Kennedy announced concrete action to tackle Lyme, including a major multi-million-dollar tick control pilot, up to $2.5 million in Lyme innovation challenges, improved diagnostics, and a goal to reduce cases by 25% by 2035 relative to 2022 levels.

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