Controversy
The terms-of-reference for the PEK study stated that the results of the study would determine which complementary medicines, if any, would continue to be supported by the national insurance program in Switzerland. However, before the study was completed and the final draft report reviewed by the international Review Board, the government announced that it would withdraw support for all complementary approaches to medicine.
Considerable uproar followed, including protests from many scientists involved in the study (including the scientific director of the program) about political interference in the scientific process:
- "The international review board of PEK has publicly protested at political interference in the scientific process."
- "There is a consensus among the review board members that the final PEK process deviated from what would have been expected by conventional standards."
Read more about this topic: Program For Evaluating Complementary Medicine
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