Medical journal decries public airing of conflicts

The Journal of the American Medical Association says it is instituting a new policy for how it handles complaints about study authors who fail to disclose they have received payments from drug companies or others that pose a conflict: It will instruct anyone filing a complaint to remain silent about the allegation until the journal investigates the charge. The order drew criticism from editors at other journals and fuels a debate about the role of medical journals in policing financial conflicts of researchers.