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OVERHAULING THE NATION’S HEALTH SYSTEM. IT’S A TOP PRIORITY FOR PRESIDENT ELECT TRUMP’S CONTROVERSIAL CHOICE AS SECRETARY FOR HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES. JOINING US NOW IS DOCTOR SCOTT HADLAND, CHIEF OF ADOLESCENT MEDICINE AT MASS GENERAL FOR CHILDREN. DOCTOR HADLAND, GOOD TO SEE YOU. THANKS FOR COMING IN. GOOD TO SEE YOU, TOO. ALL RIGHT. AS YOU KNOW, ROBERT F KENNEDY JR ACCEPTED THE NOMINATION YESTERDAY. HE HAS ALREADY SAID HE WANTS TO END VACCINE MANDATES FOR CHILDREN. WHAT COULD THAT MEAN FOR YOUR PATIENTS? I WORRY ABOUT IT. A LOT FOR MY PATIENTS. YOU KNOW, WE KNOW THAT VACCINES SAVE LIVES. AND JUST TO PUT SOME DATA BEHIND THIS THIS SUMMER, THE CDC PUT OUT A STUDY SHOWING THAT ABOUT 1.1 MILLION LIVES HAVE BEEN SAVED OVER THE LAST 30 YEARS FROM VACCINATION AND THAT’S A LOT OF LIVES. JUST TO PUT THAT INTO CONTEXT, THAT IS THE COMBINED POPULATION OF BOSTON, CAMBRIDGE, SPRINGFIELD AND WORCESTER LIVES SAVED FROM VACCINES. AND SO THIS IS REALLY CRITICAL THAT WE DO WHAT WE CAN TO GET AS MANY PEOPLE VACCINATED AS POSSIBLE. AND TO BE CLEAR, MOST OF THE PATIENTS AND FAMILIES I WORK WITH WANT VACCINATION. BUT WE NEED TO MAKE SURE THAT AS MANY PEOPLE GET VACCINATED AS POSSIBLE TO HELP PREVENT OUTBREAKS. SO I GUESS THE QUESTION IS, HOW MUCH IS MASSACHUSETTS IMPACTED? RIGHT. SO PUBLIC HEALTH DECISIONS, THEY’RE NOT JUST MADE ON THE FEDERAL LEVEL. THEY’RE ALSO MADE ON THE STATE AND LOCAL LEVEL. IN YOUR EXPERIENCE, THOUGH, HOW MUCH INFLUENCE DOES HHS HAVE ON THE LOCAL LEVEL? WELL, HHS DOES HAVE A LOT OF INFLUENCE OVER OUR DAY TO DAY PRACTICE. AS AN EXAMPLE, WHEN I GIVE A VACCINE TO A FAMILY OR TO TO A CHILD, AND I’M EDUCATING THE FAMILY, I HAND EDUCATIONAL MATERIAL THAT COMES FROM THE CDC, WHICH IS OVERSEEN BY HHS. THE OTHER THING THAT THE CDC DOES IS IT HELPS US TO TRACK OUTBREAKS. AND YOU KNOW, TALK TO ANY PEDIATRICIAN AND WE’LL TELL YOU A STORY ABOUT A PATIENT THAT WE CARED FOR WHO WAS UNVACCINATED, THAT HAD A REALLY TERRIBLE THING HAPPEN. THE TEENAGER THAT I CARED FOR, WHO HAD A MENINGITIS INFECTION BECAUSE HE WASN’T HE WASN’T VACCINATED AGAINST IT. AND ALTHOUGH HE DIDN’T LOSE HIS LIFE, HE LOST HIS HEARING. OR, YOU KNOW, THE SCHOOL AGED CHILD WHO DEVELOPED TETANUS THAT I CARED FOR AND ENDED UP IN THE ICU ON A RESPIRATOR. THE CDC HELPS US TRACK ALL OF THIS INFORMATION, LETS US KNOW WHEN OUTBREAKS ARE OCCURRING, AND HELPS KEEP. US ORGANIZED SO THAT WE CAN HAVE A PUBLIC HEALTH INTERVENTION AROUND THAT. I MEAN, YOU DON’T WANT YOUR KID GOING TO SCHOOL WONDERING IF THE KID NEXT TO YOU IS GOING TO GIVE YOU MEASLES OR SOME, SOME, SOME, FRANKLY, DISEASE THAT WE SHOULD BE VACCINATED AGAINST. WHAT ABOUT THE DOCTOR’S ROLE IN THIS AND THOSE DOCTORS ORGANIZATIONS LIKE THE AMERICAN MEDICAL ASSOCIATION OR THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF PEDIATRICS? RIGHT. THOSE PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATIONS, AND I’M A PART OF THEM, ARE REALLY IMPORTANT FOR WHAT WE DO. DOCTORS ARE OFTEN VERY BUSY, RIGHT. WE’RE SEEING PATIENTS. WE’RE ON THE FRONT LINES. WE DON’T HAVE A LOT OF TIME. AND SORT OF OPPORTUNITY TO HELP ADVOCATE DIRECTLY. AND SO THESE ORGANIZATIONS HELP US DIRECTLY KEEP OUR POLICYMAKERS INFORMED SO THAT THEY HAVE THE BEST POSSIBLE INFORMATION SO THAT THEY MAKE GOOD DECISIONS ON BEHALF OF THE PUBLIC’S HEALTH. OKAY. WELL, DOCTOR SCOTT HADLAND, FIRST OF ALL, HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY. HAD A BIRTHDAY THI
How a decades-old unsolved murder case changed the way we consume medicine
It’s almost unimaginable today. A police car slowly moving down your street, its loudspeaker blaring: “Do not take Tylenol until further notice.” But that was indeed the scene in Chicago’s suburbs in the fall of 1982.Video above: What could Trump's nomination of RFK Jr. to HHS mean for patients?The events that led to those warnings sent chills down the spines of millions of Americans. A string of unsolved murders is the subject of a CNN Original Series documentary, "How It Really Happened: Tylenol Murders."The scare began when Mary Kellerman, a 12-year-old girl from Elk Grove Village, Illinois, told her parents she was feeling sick on the morning of Sept. 29, 1982. She wanted to stay home from school. After taking one Tylenol capsule, Kellerman collapsed on the bathroom floor. She died shortly after.The same day Kellerman took that Tylenol, less than 10 miles away in Arlington Heights, Illinois, 27-year-old postal worker Adam Janus took two capsules of Tylenol. He later died at a nearby hospital. Janus’ family was in shock. When they gathered that afternoon, Adam Janus’ brother, Stanley Janus, and Stanley’s wife, Theresa, also took Tylenol capsules from the same bottle. Both dropped to the floor and were later pronounced dead. Over the next few days, three more people in the Chicago suburbs would die after taking Tylenol: 31-year-old Mary McFarland; 35-year-old Paula Prince; and 27-year-old Mary “Lynn” Reiner, who had just delivered her fourth child. Seven people, all from the same general suburban area of Chicago, had died.The first indication that Tylenol played a role in the deaths came when Helen Jensen, who was then the Arlington Heights village nurse, visited the Janus home and noticed that six capsules were missing from the same Tylenol bottle.Health officials later found that the capsules had been taken apart and the Tylenol powder had been replaced with potassium cyanide. Within just a few days, a nationwide recall of Tylenol Extra Strength, 500 milligrams, was underway. Johnson & Johnson recalled at least 31 million bottles. It was the first mass recall in American history, and it started a murder investigation that would take more improbable twists and turns than a Sherlock Holmes mystery.The most compelling suspect was James William Lewis, who investigators determined had sent a threatening letter to Johnson & Johnson, demanding $1 million to stop the Tylenol murders. But as the investigation expanded, the extent of Lewis’ involvement became more murky. He was convicted of attempted extortion and sentenced to 10 years in prison. During his sentence, he volunteered to help officials solve the Tylenol killings.Lewis offered numerous theories as to how the crime could’ve been committed. He defended his assistance in a 1992 CNN interview, saying, “If I were going down the street and your house was on fire, not my problem, but I would stop and try to help.”He served his full sentence and became a free man. Other suspects were considered: A dock worker named Roger Arnold. DNA samples were even requested from Ted Kaczynski, the “Unabomber.” But officials could never definitively link Arnold or Kaczynski to the poisonings.To this day, the mystery of the Tylenol killer endures. But recent developments, including a collaboration between law enforcement and a prominent biotech firm in Texas, bring hope that access to new DNA technology can solve the case.As horrific as those deaths remain, the Tylenol murders did lead to safety measures, which have very likely saved many lives. We now have tamper-resistant packaging on all over-the-counter medicines. Get frustrated when you open a package of Tylenol to find the cardboard box, the cap, and the bottle itself sealed? Remember that those safety layers have protected all of us — and are the result of a murder case that’s still very much open.
WASHINGTON —
It’s almost unimaginable today. A police car slowly moving down your street, its loudspeaker blaring: “Do not take Tylenol until further notice.” But that was indeed the scene in Chicago’s suburbs in the fall of 1982.
Video above: What could Trump's nomination of RFK Jr. to HHS mean for patients?
The events that led to those warnings sent chills down the spines of millions of Americans. A string of unsolved murders is the subject of a CNN Original Series documentary, "How It Really Happened: Tylenol Murders."
The scare began when Mary Kellerman, a 12-year-old girl from Elk Grove Village, Illinois, told her parents she was feeling sick on the morning of Sept. 29, 1982. She wanted to stay home from school. After taking one Tylenol capsule, Kellerman collapsed on the bathroom floor. She died shortly after.
The same day Kellerman took that Tylenol, less than 10 miles away in Arlington Heights, Illinois, 27-year-old postal worker Adam Janus took two capsules of Tylenol. He later died at a nearby hospital. Janus’ family was in shock. When they gathered that afternoon, Adam Janus’ brother, Stanley Janus, and Stanley’s wife, Theresa, also took Tylenol capsules from the same bottle. Both dropped to the floor and were later pronounced dead. Over the next few days, three more people in the Chicago suburbs would die after taking Tylenol: 31-year-old Mary McFarland; 35-year-old Paula Prince; and 27-year-old Mary “Lynn” Reiner, who had just delivered her fourth child. Seven people, all from the same general suburban area of Chicago, had died.
The first indication that Tylenol played a role in the deaths came when Helen Jensen, who was then the Arlington Heights village nurse, visited the Janus home and noticed that six capsules were missing from the same Tylenol bottle.
Health officials later found that the capsules had been taken apart and the Tylenol powder had been replaced with potassium cyanide. Within just a few days, a nationwide recall of Tylenol Extra Strength, 500 milligrams, was underway. Johnson & Johnson recalled at least 31 million bottles. It was the first mass recall in American history, and it started a murder investigation that would take more improbable twists and turns than a Sherlock Holmes mystery.
The most compelling suspect was James William Lewis, who investigators determined had sent a threatening letter to Johnson & Johnson, demanding $1 million to stop the Tylenol murders. But as the investigation expanded, the extent of Lewis’ involvement became more murky. He was convicted of attempted extortion and sentenced to 10 years in prison. During his sentence, he volunteered to help officials solve the Tylenol killings.
Lewis offered numerous theories as to how the crime could’ve been committed. He defended his assistance in a 1992 CNN interview, saying, “If I were going down the street and your house was on fire, not my problem, but I would stop and try to help.”
He served his full sentence and became a free man. Other suspects were considered: A dock worker named Roger Arnold. DNA samples were even requested from Ted Kaczynski, the “Unabomber.” But officials could never definitively link Arnold or Kaczynski to the poisonings.
To this day, the mystery of the Tylenol killer endures. But recent developments, including a collaboration between law enforcement and a prominent biotech firm in Texas, bring hope that access to new DNA technology can solve the case.
As horrific as those deaths remain, the Tylenol murders did lead to safety measures, which have very likely saved many lives. We now have tamper-resistant packaging on all over-the-counter medicines. Get frustrated when you open a package of Tylenol to find the cardboard box, the cap, and the bottle itself sealed? Remember that those safety layers have protected all of us — and are the result of a murder case that’s still very much open.
English (US)