What you need to know about healthcare reform.

The current state of health care is unethical. It is neither just nor fair. There is no morally defensible reason why some Americans get excellent medical care at costs they can afford and other Americans lose their homes or go into bankruptcy attempting to secure treatment for a seriously ill loved one. The current proposals being debated in Congress all go a long way towards making health care in America more just. At the same time, there is nothing in the current proposals that threatens a patient’s right to choose, a critical feature of an ethically acceptable health care system.

Those are not my words (although they could be). They are from a strong statement just issued by the Board of Directors of the Association of Bioethics Program Directors on behalf of its membership that you should read here.   The ABPD is a 501(c)3 organization that exists to serve the needs of bioethics programs and their directors. The Association’s work helps to foster the development and success of bioethics programs housed in academic institutions, by creating information of use to program directors, acting as a clearinghouse for information, and hosting conversations among peers about issues that are important for those in leadership positions.  Obviously, it is a non-partisan, non-political group.  I applaud the leadership of the ABPD in interjecting some sorely needed rational thinking into what has become a needlessly acrimonious debate due to misinformation and deliberate lies by right-wing radicals.

Is evolutionary biology useful in medicine?

David Hillis at The University of Texas in Austin sent an e-mail that answers this question to Jerry Coyne, who has posted the message on his website. David’s e-mail, although brief, is very specific, includes citations from the scientific literature, and is persuasive!