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John C. Ballin, PhD

JAMA. 1979;242(26):2875.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text PDF and any section headings.

It has long been a precept of medical practice that therapy for an illness should be decided by the attending physician who weighs the risks and benefits of all alternatives to select the treatment that best meets the needs of the individual patient. For drug therapy, this has meant that physicians have available a wide spectrum of agents from which to choose. Unfortunately, this concept is being eroded by an insidious and unrelenting assault by government regulators who are increasingly challenging the physician's therapeutic judgment and narrowing his therapeutic options.

Examples abound to illustrate this ominous trend. As cases in point, the following are cited:

1. Propoxyphene. On the basis of evidence that this analgesic is frequently abused, it was suggested earlier this year that the drug be removed from the market. This regulatory effort was proposed despite a lack of any evidence to show that propoxyphene is not safe
   

Author Affiliations
Department of Drugs American Medical Association Chicago

Footnotes
Address editorial communications to the Editor, 535 N Dearborn St, Chicago, IL 60610.

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