First Opinion

Perspective and opinion on medicine, biotechnology, and the life sciences writ large, curated by Patrick Skerrett. Please send submissions to first.opinion@statnews.com. View the Author Agreement here. Sign up for the weekly First Opinion newsletter here.

Tongue depressors

First Opinion

Consolidation is hurting hospitals’ supply costs, not helping them

By Rob Austin

Psychiatric room - ER

First Opinion

Mental health patients, with nowhere else to go, are overwhelming emergency departments

By Anne Zink

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Clinical Trials illo

First Opinion

Restoring trust in medical research among African-Americans

By Randall C. Morgan Jr.

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Biker illo tiled

First Opinion

A scientist opened up about his tough road to a Ph.D. It triggered a wave of responses

By STAT staff

First Opinion

Cartoons offer a peek into cancer immunotherapy — and scientists’ minds

By Neil Canavan

Medicare for All

First Opinion

Universal health care is more myth than reality. Medicare for all is a decent step toward it

By Daniel Callahan

Digital clinical trials

First Opinion

Digital health startups may not want to do randomized trials, but they need to

By Joseph Smith

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The future is here

First Opinion

Coming to terms with six years in science: obsession, isolation, and moments of wonder

By Justin Chen

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Mammography screening Program

First Opinion

A widely used guideline said I didn’t need a mammogram. It was wrong

By Leda Dederich

Defense Anthrax

First Opinion

The U.S. biodefense strategy is undermined by policies on health insurance and immigration

By David Beier and Devabhaktuni Srikrishna

Childproof Tops of Prescription Bottles

First Opinion

A new era for drug pricing: the ‘accountable choice’

By James C. Robinson

Health Care Voters

First Opinion

Coverage for pre-existing conditions lives on, even though the Affordable Care Act seemed doomed

By David Blumenthal

Human cancer cells in culture

First Opinion

Drug sensitivity and resistance testing could make ‘right to try’ a real thing

By Joe Olechno

Vote Here sign

First Opinion

Hey, doctors: Don’t be no-shows (again) on Election Day

By Suhas Gondi, Jonathan Kusner, and Yosef Berlyand

Mental health parity

First Opinion

We mustn’t let the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act languish

By Patrick J. Kennedy and Benjamin F. Miller

Assasin within First Opinion illustration

First Opinion

Male doctors said my ‘female’ cancer was incurable. Then a woman took command and gave me hope

By Doreen Carvajal

Network connections

First Opinion

Precision medicine needs a business mindset in order to flourish

By Richard G. Hamermesh and Kathy E. Giusti

First Opinion

As a pediatrician, I work with sexually assaulted teens. They deserve full investigations

By Nina Agrawal

Fanny Godin - 110th birthday

First Opinion

More research on ‘dying healthy’ will also help us live healthier

By George J. Annas and Sandro Galea

Steven Petrow

First Opinion

Memorial Sloan Kettering, you’ve betrayed my trust

By Steven Petrow

Nobel Prize

First Opinion

Keeping the Nobel Prizes relevant

By Jeffrey S. Flier

Gut bacteria microbiome illustration

First Opinion

Bringing order to the ‘wild frontier’ of microbiome medicine

By Bernat Olle

Kefauver-Harris Drug Amendments

Opinions Plus

A 1962 law slowed drug development. Changing it could slash drug prices

By Mary J. Ruwart

NIH Headquarters

First Opinion

The NIH should follow the National Science Foundation’s lead on stopping gender violence in science

By Kelsey Priest and Caroline King

Board room - men

First Opinion

Women should be in biotech and health care boardrooms. But mandating they be there is not the answer

By Carin Canale-Theakston

A Tuberculosis with meds

First Opinion

Tuberculosis is a disease the world could control. But will it?

By Paul Farmer and Lelio Marmora

Gonorrhea billboard

First Opinion

Sexually transmitted infections are at an all-time high. Urgent action is needed

By Melanie Thompson and Matthew Zahn

Trump shadow

First Opinion

I used applied psychoanalysis to assess President Trump. The diagnosis is frightening

By Justin A. Frank

Surgical waste

First Opinion

The hidden harm of health care: air, water, and other pollution

By Jonathan E. Slutzman

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