The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) recently issued proposed regulations that could enhance the value of electronic health information. Specifically, the proposed regulations focus on the areas of interoperability and patients’ access to their health data. Electronic health information is a relatively new phenomenon. It became a subject of national importance in 2004, [...]

Recently, a District Court Judge in Iowa struck down a law passed in the spring of 2018 which would have barred abortions after a fetal heartbeat could be detected by means of a vaginal ultrasound. The exceptions included cases of medical emergency, or medically necessity, severe fetal defects, or when the fetus was conceived through [...]

An important decision of special interest to politically active citizens in Europe came out on January 24, 2019 by the European Court of Human Rights. As stated in the Press Release issued by the Registrar of the Court, in the case of Catt v. the United Kingdom (application no. 43514/15) “UK failed to protect the right [...]

From intrauterine device Mirena, to anticoagulant Xarelto, to gardening weed killer RoundUp, the German conglomerate Bayer has attempted to dip their feet into awe-inspiring advances in many sectors of the science field. Unfortunately, not all of the results have been ideal with the corporation now facing thousands of lawsuits from consumers over the past several [...]

Before January 15th, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross’s decision to have every 2020 Census respondent answer a question about citizenship (for the first time in sixty years) lived as either a story of bureaucratic and political intrigue or a high-profile case on the Supreme Court’s docket. The bureaucratic-intrigue focus would have included a chain of events [...]

As trials begin in March, all eyes are on the multi-state opioid litigation against pharmaceutical manufacturers and distributors. More than 30 states, including hard-hit Ohio and West Virginia, and nearly 1,500 cities and counties have filed suit against pharmaceutical companies, wholesalers, and pharmacies for their role in the opioid crisis. Every day, more than 130 [...]

Mercury is one of the most toxic substances on earth. When inhaled or ingested by humans, mercury can cause severe neurological damage, cardiovascular harm, endocrine disruption, kidney damage and muscle coordination issues. When pregnant women are exposed, their babies can suffer IQ and motor skills impairments that will last their lifetime. Through rain, snow or [...]

Dictators use fear as a tool to stay in power. Politicians use various techniques to govern as well. In liberal democracies governance is based on incentives, good governance, rule of law, and service. Strongmen use other techniques to govern, such as fear, outside threats, coercion, and incentives. Another technique to govern seen largely in totalitarian [...]

The news on the climate crisis has been bad lately and getting worse. In the face of President Trump’s continued denial and his administration’s diligent efforts to roll back every shred of progress made by the Obama administration and to prop up an ailing coal industry, the warnings from the scientific community have only become [...]

Thomas Jefferson is reported to have said: “When government fears the people, there is liberty. When the people fear the government, there is tyranny.” I have investigated and prosecuted dictators and their henchmen for most of my professional life. I have studied their lives, personalities, their rise to power and how they governed once achieving [...]