Medical Treatments and Procedures

CBS 5 Reporter Claims Chronic Pain and Gets a Medical-Pot Card, Then Implies Wrongdoing

Hopefully you missed CBS 5's "investigation" into the state's medical-marijuana program, in which they claim that "young, healthy" people are getting medical-marijuana cards.To prove it, reporter Morgan Loew, acting undercover, tells a doctor he's had back pain for months -- pain he said was "distra ... More >>

CBS 5 "Investigation" Into Medical Marijuana Includes a Made-Up Statistic

CBS 5 -- the local news station that claims to be "telling it like it is" -- prominently displayed a made-up statistic during its recent anti-medical marijuana propaganda piece "investigation."In the report, in which "investigative reporter" Morgan Loew told the state health department it was true t ... More >>

Last Shot: A Concert Photographer's Battle With Cancer

[Editor's Note: This post originally appeared on Heard Mentality, the music blog of our sister paper OC Weekly. Longtime concert photographer Andrew Youssef found out almost two years ago that he had Stage IV Colon Cancer. In that time, he has continued to shoot tons of music events for us on top of ... More >>

Medical Marijuana in Arizona a "Charade," and What's Wrong with That, Exactly?

See also: -Arizona Organix Steps Out as the State's First Authorized Medical-Marijuana Dispensary This is near-heresy to say in my current position as a scribe for an alternative publication, but when Arizona Republic columnist Laurie Roberts writes that our state's medical marijuana program is a " ... More >>

Lyman Morkunas Allegedly Bragged About Breaking a Puppy's Legs With a 16-Pound Sledgehammer

One of the easiest ways to piss off Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio -- aside from being in the country illegally or writing for New Times -- is to mess with a puppy.Animal abuse is one of Arpaio's press-release-worthy crimes, and Lyman Morkunas allegedly bragging about using a 16-pound sledgehamm ... More >>

Local Woman Who Represented Self In Med-Mal Suit Gets Second Crack At Allegedly Wayward Doc

The old saw that he who represents himself in court has a fool for a client carries weight with us, having seen the usually sorry outcomes of such endeavors.   ​But an Arizona Court of Appeals decision filed last week gives a local woman hope that her self-composed lawsuit against a bo ... More >>

Feds: Alleged Doctor Feel-Good Used Fraudulent AHCCCS Cash to Buy Arabian Horse

WikipediaThe feds say Dr. Angelo Chirban and his ex-wife used money they scammed from the state health care program to buy an Arabian horse like the one pictured above.​A federal grand jury returned an indictment this morning alleging that a Queen Creek pain management doctor billed the state heal ... More >>

In a Strange About-Face, the President Tries to Hack Medical Marijuana Off at the Knees

Rick Perry's Texas Is a Fantasy Land

Walmart Employees Steal Cash From Store to Fund Sex-Change Operation, Toyota Supra

The Daily CourierSpencer Cullen stole money from Wal-Mart to pay for a sex-change operation.​Spencer Danger Cullen, 23, was born with a penis -- and he's apparently so determined to get rid of it that he and a friend burglarized the Walmart where the two worked in order to come up with the cash to ... More >>

Arizona Legislators Want to Make Doctors Show Women Pictures of Fetus Before Abortion

Pro-lifers in the Arizona legislature want doctors to show images like this to women seeking an abortion.​Several members of the Arizona State Legislature want to force doctors to offer to show women seeking an abortion ultrasound images of the fetus before they end their pregnancy.Supporters of t ... More >>

Sewage Leaks on Surgical Patients at Veterans Affairs Hospital Began in 2009; Problem Possibly Fixed Last Summer

​The problem of sewer water leaking on surgical patients at the Carl T. Hayden VA Medical Center in Phoenix began as early as April of 2009, a newly obtained report shows.   Until we received the report today, we'd been under the impression that two incidents of water leaking into the ... More >>

Gabrielle Giffords' Recovery Chances Boosted by Advances in Brain-Trauma Surgery Since JFK's Assassination in 1963

Wikimedia Commons Gabrielle Giffords, following her 2010 election victory. ​In the aftermath of the shooting of Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords on Saturday, many people are wondering about her chances of recovery. They're the best they can be, given advances in brain surgery, according ... More >>

Prop 203 -- the Arizona Medical Marijuana Act -- Puts the Chronic in Chronic Pain

Toilet Water Dripping in Surgery Rooms at VA Medical Center Prompted Inspections; Other Problems Alleged in Letter

Image: www.phoenix.va.gov​ Backed-up toilet water on the fifth floor of the Carl T. Hayden VA Medical Center in Phoenix dripped into rooms where surgery was occurring this summer -- twice.The dirty secret was revealed in an anonymous letter we received yesterday that outlined less-than-admirab ... More >>

Brain Scans on Your iPhone? Yeah, There's an App for That, and They're Testing it Out in Scottsdale

www.thepreppyprincess.com​At last, an iPhone application that does something a little more useful than finding the closest Applebee's.Researchers at the Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale are conducting clinical trials on a new iPhone app that would allow doctors to view brain scans with their iPhone ... More >>

Rabies, Rabies, and More Rabies. Recent Bobcat Attacks and Kids Thinking Bats Are Cuddly Pets Has Health Department Concerned

www.icanhazcheezburger.com​The Arizona Department of Health Services today issued a warning for Arizona residents over an influx in rabies cases seen around the state, and the usual suspects are once again bats and bobcats.According to the ADHS, there were three bobcat attacks in Arizon ... More >>

Rabies in Maricopa County: Why You Should and Shouldn't Be Terrified; Plus, Here's a Free Pets-Vaccination Spot

www.deviantart.com​As we reported back in January, 2009 was the most rabid year in Arizona history, with 261 animals testing positive for the disease, which is an alarming 85 more than 2008.The outbreak got so bad in Santa Cruz and Coconino counties that county-wide quarantines were issued. ... More >>

Heart to Heart Pet-A-Rama

Las Vegas Man Busted Here With 660 Boxes of Meth-Making Ingredient Pseudoephedrine

www.funnyaussiephotos.com​What could someone possibly need with 660 boxes of pseudoephedrine? That was the question Arizona Department of Public Safety officers were asking a Las Vegas man after they found an absurd amount of cold medicine in his car, and it didn't take long for them to figu ... More >>

Anti-Vaccine Ron Paul Insaniacs (aka, "Ronulans") Rousted by Phoenix PD, and Man Could I Care Less

Well, at least they weren't using old bedsheets this time around Normally, I could give a flip if someone hangs a banner off a freeway overpass. But these Ron Paul-worshipping hosers so annoy me with their conspiracy-a-minute mills and their wack, home-made signs spouting the nonsense that "vaccin ... More >>

Local Docs Enter Record Books With Largest Uterus Ever Removed

Two local doctors will be named in the Guiness Book of World Records for the biggest uterus removal ever. The November 30, 2007 procedure at Tempe St. Luke's is a big deal in the world of minimally invasive surgical techniques, which are far easier on patients than surgeries that involve large i ... More >>

Gray Matters

Hey, it’s not brain surgery. Well, okay, it kinda is.

Old School of Rock

Don’t hang the DJ at this pre-post-mod blowout

Brown Power

Say it loud! You're intact and you're proud!

A Cancer on ASU

Could Bob Pettit have cured cancer in his lifetime? We might never know, thanks to nasty university politics

Broken

The system that serves tiny children with disabilities is nowhere near fixed, after years of trying on the governor's watch

Perk Up

Make your naughty bits nice

The New Meth

When it comes to preventing -- and treating -- crystal meth addiction, Arizona may be getting a clue

California Schemin'

The national press takes note as a major lawsuit is filed in the "Rent-a-Patient" scam

BEST ART COLLECTION

Phoenix Children's Hospital

Hypocritic Oath

California's rent-a-patient scam has reaped millions for greedy physicians, clinics and patients

Out of Patients

Local waste plant tries to clean up after embarrassing insurance mess

Surgical Strike

Following a New Times story on rent-a-patients, California authorities raid several health clinics

Rent a patient

Need some quick cash? Everyone makes a killing when doctors and clinics scam the insurance companies.

Mr. Green Genes

Meet the creator of edible vaccines

Prince of Hearts

Dr. Michael Teodori holds the hearts of many Valley children - often literally - in his hands

For the Love of Jamie

Cheryl Moore expected a healthy baby to come off the plane from Korea. She got Jamie instead. And then she and her family made a surprising choice.

Best News Talk Show

The David Leibowitz Show
KTAR-AM 620

Parting Shot

Forced out of the military over refusal to take part in a controversial anthrax immunization program, an ex-serviceman finds his protest was in vein

Shot in the Arm

Anthrax vaccine opponents are finding more allies in Congress

Letters

Shot to Hell

Mandatory participation in military's anthrax vaccine program pushes plunger on medical controversy

Drawing from the Wrong Side of the Brain

Instead of removing Michael Cooley's brain tumor, a surgeon cut out healthy tissue. Fifteen years later, Cooley's settled malpractice cases against his doctor and his lawyer. The tumor still must be removed.

Suspects of Convenience

The sting targeted stores selling over-the-counter medicines that could be cooked into meth. But the cops warned major retailers to stop the sales while throwing the book at mom-and-pop shops, most of which are owned by Arab immigrants.

Sentence: 90 Days of Pain

Jail inmate with 50 bullet fragments in arm waits months for medical treatment

THE WELFARE REFORM TRAP

THE YEAR OF LIVING LITERALLYBEST-SELLING AUTHOR DEBORAH LAAKE SURVIVES SUCCESS, CONTROVERSY, MALIGNANCY

THE LAST DAYS OF TAMMY GENTRY

THE SURGERY WAS SUPPOSED TO GIVE THE FORMER MARCH OF DIMES POSTER CHILD A LIFE. BUT A SERIES OF ERRORS INSTEAD LED TO HER DEATH.

NEXT TIME, TEST BETWEEN HIS EARS