pharmacy – mackaycartoons

Friday September 15, 2023

September 15, 2023 by Graeme MacKay

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Friday September 15, 2023

Over-the-Counter Cold Remedies: A Quackery Quandary

February 6, 2015

In the wake of the FDA’s recent revelation challenging the effectiveness of common over-the-counter cold and flu remedies containing phenylephrine, a long-standing dilemma has surfaced. While the FDA’s verdict on the limited efficacy of phenylephrine, a prevalent ingredient in these medications, has created a buzz of uncertainty, there’s a nostalgic and enduring remedy that deserves our attention – the warm embrace of Bubbe’s chicken soup.

The FDA’s pronouncement about phenylephrine delivers a sobering blow, casting doubt on the potency of some of our most trusted cold and flu treatments. Brands like Benadryl, Mucinex, Sudafed PE, and Tylenol, once hailed as saviors during the sniffle season, may be on the brink of obsolescence as manufacturers race to revamp their formulas. But what if these colourful pills we’ve reached for throughout the years are nothing more than sugar-coated placebos?

July 21, 2020

In stark contrast, Bubbe’s chicken soup, a timeless remedy with roots reaching back generations, may lack the scientific rigor some demand, yet it consistently offers a comforting refuge when illness strikes. While it may lack the stamp of approval from clinical trials, it boasts an undeniable ability to make us feel better. As we grapple with the uncertainty surrounding modern cold remedies, perhaps it’s time to heed the wisdom of tradition and embrace the enduring comfort of Bubbe’s tried-and-true chicken soup. (AI.) Editorial cartoon published in the Toronto Star.

Saturday April 29, 2017

April 28, 2017 by Graeme MacKay

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday April 29, 2017

Proposed: Publicly funded drug plan for all Ontarians under 25

Give one cheer for the Liberals. Kathleen Wynne’s Ontario government has finally bit the bullet on publicly funded pharmacare.

February 24, 2017

Their scheme to provide those under 25 with free prescription drugs isn’t comprehensive. Nor, in spite of Finance Minister Charles Sousa’s boast, is it exactly path-breaking.

Saskatchewan already offers a similar, albeit less generous, drug plan to children 14 and under.

But it is a start.

The plan, announced in Thursday’s budget, would allow any Ontarian age 24 and under who needs prescription drugs for medical purposes to receive them at no cost.

March 10, 2017

Unlike the province’s drug plan for seniors, there would be no co-payment and no deductible. Unlike the drug plan for welfare recipients, there would be no means test.

Rather, like medicare, it would be universally available and cover the entire cost of roughly 4,400 drugs.

Experts can argue whether the Liberal pharmacare plan is better or worse than that pitched by Andrea Horwath’s Ontario New Democrats. The NDP proposes a scheme that would cover everyone under 65 but only for 125 commonly prescribed drugs.

But the Liberals have the advantage of being in power right now. If they follow through on their promise, their truncated pharmacare plan will come into effect next January.

March 8, 2016

For these reasons, any move toward universal publicly funded pharmacare is welcome and probably irreversible. Progressive Conservative leader Patrick Brown told reporters Thursday that he would prefer a scheme that is means-tested. But Ontario already has a drug benefit program for the poor.

What is useful about this scheme is precisely what Brown doesn’t like about it: It is a step on the road to universal pharmacare.

Sousa told reporters that he hopes Ontario’s move will persuade Ottawa and other provinces to act. Perhaps it will. (Source: Toronto Star)

Wednesday November 7, 2012

November 7, 2012 by Graeme MacKay

By Graeme MacKay, Editorial Cartoonist, The Hamilton Spectator – Wednesday November 7, 2012

‘The beginning of a new era in America’

Pharmacy’s poll finds split between headache and anger relief

President Barack Obama’s re-election — in a ferocious campaign dotted by charges of racial anger and minority-voter suppression — has provided what many blacks say will surely deepen his legacy: irrefutable evidence that his presidency is hardly a historical fluke as he has now won two national campaigns with overwhelming white support.

Obama, the nation’s first black president, was already soaked in history, a figure seen in the aftermath of his 2008 victory as the culmination of a decades-long civil rights crusade that suffered the assassination of beloved figures who fought and marched for the right to vote and freely pursue the American dream.

But Obama’s first term as president also saw him pelted with racially charged denunciations — some from politicians — that reopened festering wounds and even fears in the African American community for his safety. At times it felt as if the W.E.B. Du Bois prophecy — the problem of the 20th century would be the color line, he famously opined — had leapt right into the 21st century.

“In many ways,” said Lonnie G. Bunch III, founding director of the National Museum of African American History and Culture, “Obama’s reelection can be seen as resilience on the part of the African American community.”

But Bunch admitted that he felt, as did many blacks in the waning weeks of the campaign, that Obama — despite accomplishments in the war on terrorism, a strengthening economy and passage of a universal-health-care law — had been mercilessly castigated.

There was jubilation on the streets of Washington with Obama’s re-election. Janice Brown, 30, a staffing consultant who lives in Suitland, Md., stood in a corner of Busboys and Poets restaurant, excited and relieved. “It’s awesome for America. Not only is he a great leader, but he is inspiring.” (Source: The Independent)