David Vitter

Vitter, Breitbart Revive Death Panel Smear In Attack On FDA Breast Cancer Drug Decision

Brian Beutler | July 28, 2010, 1:29PM

Senator David Vitter (R-LA)

In one fell swoop today, Sen. David Vitter (R-LA) revived the specter of health care death panels, and called into question the FDA's ability to judge the effectiveness of breast cancer medication.

According to the Associated Press, Vitter slammed the FDA, which voted 12-1 to drop its endorsement of the breast cancer drug Avastin after research showed that its additional positive effects were minimal, but it was associated with increased liver toxicity. Vitter called the decision "sickening" -- but not because the FDA's accelerated approval of the drug in 2007 went against the medical advise of its advisory committee or because women with metastatic breast cancer using the drug were more likely to die. Instead, he compared the FDA's reversal to withholding care for patients whose lives are "not deemed valuable enough."

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White House

White House Disputes Fox Report On New Breast Cancer Screening Guidelines

Christina Bellantoni | November 18, 2009, 11:53AM

Deputy White House Communications Director Dan Pfeiffer

The White House is pushing back against a Fox News report spinning the results of a new study on breast cancer screening.

White House Communications Director Dan Pfeiffer blogged a response to a Fox report suggesting "Critics See Health Care Rationing Behind New Mammography Recommendations."

Pfeiffer quoted from the report, which suggested "some lawmakers on Capitol Hill are blasting new guidelines from a government task force that recommends against routine mammographies for women under 50, questioning whether they are tantamount to health care 'rationing' in the fight against the No. 2 cancer killer in U.S. women."

His response:

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