• A TV spot says McCain's plan requires "cuts in benefits, eligibility or both."

• Obama said in a speech that McCain plans "cuts" that would force seniors to "pay more for your drugs, receive fewer services, and get lower quality care."
  
  
• Update, Oct. 21: A second Obama ad claims that McCain’s plan would bring about a 22 percent cut in benefits, “higher premiums and co-pays," and more expensive prescription drugs.
  

These claims are false, and based on a single newspaper report that says no such thing. McCain's policy director states unequivocally that no benefit cuts are envisioned. McCain does propose substantial "savings" through such means as cutting fraud, increased use of information technology in medicine and better handling of expensive chronic diseases. Obama himself proposes some of the same cost-saving measures. We're skeptical that either candidate can deliver the savings they promise, but that's no basis for Obama to accuse McCain of planning huge benefit cuts.

http://www.factcheck.org/elections-2008/obamas_false_medicare_claim.html


The media continues -- with help from "watchdog" groups -- continues to characterize drugs as dangerous by confusing association with cause:

The most dangerous medications were the anti-smoking drug varenicline, which was linked to 1,001 injuries and 50 deaths in the three-month period ending in March, and the blood thinner heparin, which was associated with 779 injuries and 102 deaths.The most dangerous medications were the anti-smoking drug varenicline, which was linked to 1,001 injuries and 50 deaths in the three-month period ending in March, and the blood thinner heparin, which was associated with 779 injuries and 102 deaths.
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-sci-drugs23-2008oct23,0,3729962.story
Are drugs three times more dangerous?  Are we picking up more danger and death that is being attributed to other causes? 

None of the above. 

Here's a more likely answer provided by the authors of the ISMP study who happen to be well known industry and FDA critics. 

"Most drugs in medical use produced only a small number of reports of serious
injury or death. One-half the 773 identifiable drugs tracked in the most recent
quarter had six or fewer serious adverse events reported. Only 50 drugs accounted
for 100 or more reported serious injuries."
http://www.ismp.org/
The newest drugs, the one's that are most likely reported in the media in other words or to be likely targets of lawsuits.

At the same it would appear prudent for companies who are launching new products or new uses to proactively seek out the response of consumers and integrate those responses into other pharmacovigilance activities as soon as possible.   Studies show that doing so allow companies to identify and test signals earlier than would otherwise be the case.  

Expert Opin Drug Saf. 2007 Nov;6(6):705-12.

Effect of consumer reporting on signal detection: using disproportionality analysis

One such consumer-centered source of information is http://iguard.org/

Better to go right to the source rather than to be "sourced" by sources that don't have your interest or the consumer's real interest in mind. That goes for health care policy and drug safety.