Americans frequently assert the
For many neo-con thinkers, this status implicitly ascribes to the United States a state of being akin to the biblical ”shining city on a hill;” exempt from an array of historical forces that have affected other countries. For half a century or more, this romanticized view has been rejected by liberal scholars. Still, related debate roils contemporary political dialogue.
Occasionally, the ideal, and at least in some corners, the patently oversold notion that we are a uniquely stationed, righteously-oriented, global colossus, runs headlong into direct conflict with unmistakable, unalterable, and undeniable countervailing facts. Such was the case nearly a year ago when on Friday, September 30, 2010; Secretaryof State Hillary Clinton and Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius apologized to
This discovery and admission was just the most recent case of medical experimentation and exploitation that the
- Although these events occurred more than 64 years ago, we are outraged that such reprehensible research could have occurred under the guise of public health. We deeply regret that it happened, and we apologize to all the individuals who were affected by such abhorrent research practices."
Of course this is an example of the kind of thing a number of President Obama’s critics constantly pan him for; apologizing to other usually small, and in their opinions, lesser countries. Interestingly, in their views, these kinds of transgressions, apparently, do not warrant acknowledging, or an apology. Perhaps, as they see it, American Exceptionalism means never having to say you’re sorry!
In August 2011, the
There, according to the Washington Post, doctors brought infected prostitutes to unwitting inmates, or opened wounds in victim’s penises, faces, and arm with needles, then poured bacteria inside. In some cases, infectious material was poured into victims’ spines. In one case, researchers poured gonorrhea-infected pus into the eyes and other orifices of a woman already dying of syphilis, and then injected her with more syphilis.
Given the disparate treatment of the Guatemalan inmates versus the prisoners in
The goal of the research in was to determine whether taking penicillin after sex would protect against syphilis, gonorrhea, and chancroid. The question was a medical priority at the time, especially in the military. About 700 Guatemalans were treated for sexually transmitted diseases, but it remains unclear whether they were adequately treated, or what became of them.
Susan Reverby, a historian at
After sending President Obama a report in September, 2011, the Commission will meet again in November to discuss whether current protections are adequate for research subjects, both in the United States, and internationally. The Commission will then issue a final report in December.
Dr. Reverby’s incidental discovery was facilitated by her interest in the Mother of All lack of informed consent studies, The Tuskegee Experiment. Originally intended to last six months, the study, a travesty in virtually every regard devolved into a 40-year exploitive invasion of the lives of 600 black men (and their families) from
The men, 201 of whom did not have the disease as the outset, were never given adequate treatment. Even after penicillin became the acknowledged drug of choice for syphilis in 1947, researchers did not offer it to the subjects. There is no evidence that the subjects were ever given the option to quit the study, even after penicillin was determined to be highly effective and widely used.
The timeline for the saga of the Tuskegee Experiment, which began in 1932, now spans 79 years. The egregious treatment of the subjects of this heinous study is a classic example of why regulation, review, and oversight are important tools in ensuring the health, safety and welfare of the public; all segments of the public. The sequence of events runs as follows:
- 1932 – Public Health Service began the “
- July 1972 – The Associated Press ran a story about the
- The panel found the (600) men had agreed freely to be examined and treated, but…saw no evidence the men had been informed of the study, or its purpose, and they determined the men had been misled, and not given all the facts required for informed consent
- October 1972 – The panel concluded the study was ethically unjustified; advised stopping the study at once
- November 1972 – The Assistant Secretary for Health and Scientific Affairs announced the end of the Tuskegee Study
- Summer 1973 – A class–action lawsuit was filed on behalf of the study participants and their families
- 1974 – A $10 million out of court settlement was reached, and provided lifetime medical benefits and burial services to all living participants, via the Tuskegee Health Benefit Program (THBP)
- 1975 – Wives and widows, and offspring were added to the program
- 1995 – The program was expanded to health as well as medical benefits
- The last participant died in January 2004
- The last widow receiving THBP benefits died in January 2009
- There are 15 offspring currently receiving medical and health benefits
The
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4 comments:
Disgusting...morally and otherwise..
very informative I truly don't trust america when it comes to our food, health or any aspect of them protecting our will being.
Jon:
The scary part is, while these are two documented, and fairly well-known cases, the practice of medical experimentaion, sans informed consent, has been a fairly common historical practice.
'06!
Randolph:
These cases should certainly give one pause; though I suspect both provide acute lessons on what it means to be powerless, and the vulnerability that accrues naturally from that state of being.
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