I wonder why?

Dr. Jess writes in the Des Moines Register:

Over the last several years, Iowa Sen. Charles Grassley has aggressively campaigned against conflict of interests in academic medicine. He has criticized academics at dozens of institutions across the country, including but not limited to Harvard and Stanford universities. His primary targets are government-funded researchers who had undisclosed or inadequately disclosed ties to the pharmaceutical industry. The concern as detailed by Grassley in a letter to the chancellor of the University of Texas system is that "funding from pharmaceutical companies can influence scientific studies, continuing medical education, and the prescribing patterns of doctors." Beyond disclosure of this conflict, Grassley demands an explanation of how "the interest has been managed, reduced, or eliminated."

Alrighty then. That seems fair!

Executive summary: Reuters coverage and a YouTube of the event show that the White House live blogger suppressed a single payer question asked by Dr. Jess Federowicz of PNHP.

[Welcome, Kos readers. Dr. Federowicz is live blogging with us this morning!]

Dr. Jess Federowicz, M.D. is a board-certified psychiatrist and clinician investigator in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Iowa. Dr. Fiedorowicz also won the lottery for a ticket to the White House's Iowa Health Care forum -- after Iowa's (Democratic!) Governor Chet Culver, most shamefully, had tried to sell the tickets to corporate sponsors! Dr. Federowicz participated in the protests outside the hall, and also spoke inside the hall at the forum. As reported by Reuters India*:

Dr. Jess Fiedorowicz, a psychiatrist at the University of Iowa Hospitals who was with the protest group, told the meeting a majority of Americans support a "single payer" or government-run national health insurance program.

"Can we put it on the table for discussion?" Fiedorowicz asked Nancy-Ann De Parle, director of the White House Office on Health Reform.

"Can we study costing? Can we study feasibility of this truly universal, socially just and fiscally responsible alternate to our currently unjust and woefully inefficient system?" Fiedorowicz asked. Many in the crowd applauded.

And yet -- and I know this wil surprise you -- Dr. Fiedorowicz appears nowhere in the White House "live blog" of the event! Is Reuters wrong? Let's go to the tape (or in this case, the YouTube):  Read more…