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Aaron Mitchell

@thewonkologist.bsky.social
1.2K followers 365 following 350 posts

Medical oncologist and health services researcher. Focusing on health care costs, physician-industry COI, and oncology reimbursement reform. Opinions mine.

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Aaron Mitchell @thewonkologist.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
Our latest, out today in JCO @ascocancer.bsky.social : Industry payments to oncologists can sway us to prescribe, regardless of whether the drug is good or bad. ascopubs.org/doi/10.1200/...
ascopubs.org
Financial Payments From Drug Manufacturers to Oncologists and Use of Guideline-Preferred Cancer Treatments
PURPOSEPayments from the drug industry influence physicians' prescribing decisions. Whether industry payments affect the likelihood that patients receive the guideline-preferred treatment for their ca...
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Brad Lander @bradlander.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
Gender-affirming care saves lives, respects the rights of patients, and reflects that healthcare is supposed to be between providers and patients, not between providers and the Trump Administration. (1/3)
gothamist.com
Mount Sinai reaches deal with Trump DOJ to end gender-affirming care for minors
Mount Sinai is the latest in a string of U.S. hospitals to reach similar agreements with the Trump administration.
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Daniel G. Aaron, MD, JD @medlawdan.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
NEW: Draft white paper up on SSRN - "Reimagining FDA’s Corporate Funding: Pathways to Reform or Abolition of User Fees" FDA's corporate funding, aka "user fees," are not ancillary -- they have big implications for FDA policy & integrity. (1/x) papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....
papers.ssrn.com
Reimagining FDA's Corporate Funding: Pathways to Reform or Abolition of User Fees
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration derives most of its drug regulatory budget from "user fees" paid by pharmaceutical companies. This White Paper l
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Aaron Mitchell @thewonkologist.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
"The only measures that have been shown to reduce COI to date are legislated policies, specifically those policies that ban or restrict gifts to doctors..." Agree with this perspective by Dr. Joel Lexchin. Disclosure is not enough! journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10....
journals.sagepub.com
Sage Journals: Discover world-class research
Subscription and open access journals from Sage, the world's leading independent academic publisher.
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Arrianna Marie Planey, PhD MA @arrianna-planey.bsky.social · 03/08/2026
"Three years in, CalAIM (California Advancing and Innovating Medi-Cal) has produced real, measurable progress, reaching nearly 453,000 Medi-Cal members through Enhanced Care Management & more than 528,000 through Community Supports since 2022..."
healthaffairs.org
The Equity Cliff: Federal Medicaid Cuts Are About To Undo California’s Health System Gains | Health Affairs Forefront
What California chooses in the next six months will determine whether a decade of Medicaid transformation holds or collapses and how the health and well-being of thousands or millions of California’s ...
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Aaron Mitchell @thewonkologist.bsky.social · 29/07/2026
No surprise: receiving payments from device-makers increases physicians' use of the paying company's devices. Add this one to the stack! jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...
jamanetwork.com
Medical Device Industry Payments and Utilization of Corresponding Devices
This cross-sectional study evaluates the association between device industry payments to physicians and physician utilization of device-associated procedures across multiple specialties.
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Michael Hobbes @michaelhobbes.bsky.social · 27/07/2026
The actual harsh truth about MAHA is that it is an anti-vaxx, anti-science, pro-diarrhea conspiracy movement. It cloaks its arguments in abstractions about "big pharma" and "free speech" to generate *the exact op-ed The Atlantic keeps publishing*. Movements like this need to be fought, not placated.
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Stacie Dusetzina @dusetzinas.bsky.social · 24/07/2026
Good reminder of how hard it is to access health insurance for people who are disabled by their conditions but in the waiting period for coverage for SSDI/Medicare. The mortality during the wait period for people with cancer (neoplasms) is nearly 40%. www.healthaffairs.org/doi/epdf/10....
Graphic shows the 24-month mortality rate for different conditions for people who are in the 2 year waiting period for obtaining social security disability insurance. Shows nearly 40% mortality for cancer, followed by about 15% digestive diseases, blood diseases, and HIV/AIDS. Lack of health insurance coverage during this period likely contributes to these higher rates of death.
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Aaron Mitchell @thewonkologist.bsky.social · 23/07/2026
Asking for help: are there any publicly available data sources on hospital surgical volume?
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Sarah Karlin-Smith @sarahkarlin-smith.bsky.social · 22/07/2026
Negotiating prices at launch creates more equity among Medicare beneficiaries, ensuring that people who need a drug earlier in the product’s lifecycle are not disproportionately bearing the costs of a medicine. www.healthaffairs.org/content/fore...
healthaffairs.org
Why Medicare Must Negotiate Drug Prices At Launch | Health Affairs Forefront
Negotiating drug prices at launch would ensure that patients and health programs get fair prices on prescription drugs at the outset, instead of first facing nearly a decade or longer of excessive pri...
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Stacie Dusetzina @dusetzinas.bsky.social · 22/07/2026
Honestly, WTF.
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Aaron Mitchell @thewonkologist.bsky.social · 20/07/2026
"This study provides among the most rigorous evidence to date on receipt of optimal initial therapy [for cancer]...in a nationally representative sample of beneficiaries in MA vs traditional Medicare." Thank-you to our commentators for this kind review! jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...
jamanetwork.com
Medicare Advantage and Cancer Care
Medicare-eligible beneficiaries have the option of receiving their benefits through traditional Medicare administered by the federal government or through private Medicare Advantage (MA) plans that re...
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Aaron Mitchell @thewonkologist.bsky.social · 20/07/2026
1st firsthand experience with NHS today: 1) spent an entire day navigating a bureaucratic maze of separate labs, clinics, cash-pay-only pharmacies, and land-line-only phone consults 2) entire bill for same-day consult and Rx, without insurance = $20 Sounds about right
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JAMA Network Open @jamanetworkopen.com · 17/07/2026
Medical device industry payments to physicians were associated with higher utilization of corresponding devices, with a stepwise increase in procedure volumes as payments rose. ja.ma/3RfJqjq
JAMA Network Open article, 'Original Investigation | Ethics: Medical Device Industry Payments and Utilization of Corresponding Devices.' Authors: Misop Han, Yuezhou Jing, Zeyad Hammadeh et al. Published Online: July 17, 2026.
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Aaron Mitchell @thewonkologist.bsky.social · 14/07/2026
Coverage of our recent COI study presented at #ASCO26 @ascocancer.bsky.social, finding that oncologists increase cancer drug prescribing after receiving drug company bribes. (in print soon!) www.healthcare-brew.com/stories/phar...
healthcare-brew.com
Pharma companies paid providers $14.7 billion in 2025. What does that mean?
These payments can affect everything from prescribing patterns to pharma’s business strategy
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Aaron Mitchell @thewonkologist.bsky.social · 14/07/2026
Our new study on cancer care for #MedicareAdvantage beneficiaries is out today in @jamainternalmed.com! We find similar treatment timeliness and quality, but use of cheaper treatments in MA vs. traditional Medicare jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...
jamanetwork.com
Quality, Cost, and Timeliness of Cancer Treatment in Medicare Advantage and Traditional Medicare
This cohort study compares Medicare Advantage beneficiaries and traditional Medicare beneficiaries newly diagnosed with cancer with regards to timeliness of initial treatment, receiving the optimum in...
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Dan Ollendorf @dano-hta.bsky.social · 25/06/2026
Happening now!
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Carl T. Bergstrom @carlbergstrom.com · 23/06/2026
ADA leaders were forcibly removed from their own meeting for sharing copies of an ADA OpEd critical of Jay Bhattacharya. Thanks to you it's now got >125,000 views. As CDC interim director, Jay also blocked publication of this paper because it showed that COVID vaccines work. You know what to do.
jamanetwork.com
Interim Estimated Effectiveness of 2025-2026 COVID-19 Vaccines in Adults
This case-control study estimates vaccine effectiveness of 2025-2026 COVID-19 vaccines among adults with COVID-19–associated emergency department or urgent care encounters and COVID-19–associated hosp...
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Hannah R. Abrams @hannahrabrams.bsky.social · 22/06/2026
Nice editorial @thewonkologist.bsky.social & Dr. Nancy Keating about revisiting our priors re: Medicare Advantage for cancer care. While there is reason to be cautious and investigate, current data on MA vs traditional medicare in cancer is far from conclusive. ascopubs.org/doi/10.1200/...
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Aaron Mitchell @thewonkologist.bsky.social · 18/06/2026
Timely, this recent piece in JCO Oncology Practice @ascocancer.bsky.social seems aimed towards helping private practice oncologists understand the implications of selling to their practice to PE firms: ascopubs.org/doi/10.1200/...
ascopubs.org
From Burnout to Buyout: Private Equity's Growing Appeal in Oncology | JCO Oncology Practice
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Aaron Mitchell @thewonkologist.bsky.social · 18/06/2026
I appreciated this thoughtful commentary on our recent (surprisingly "negative") study of private equity's effect on cancer care. I would summarize as: we looked only at one form of harm, and other potential harms have not been excluded. academic.oup.com/jnci/advance...
academic.oup.com
Private equity acquisitions and cancer care: nothing to see here? Not so fast.
Private equity (PE) involvement in the acquisition of health-care practices is rapidly expanding, with more than $750 billion invested over the past decade
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Aaron Mitchell @thewonkologist.bsky.social · 03/06/2026
I appreciate this @jama.com commentary by Knox and @asarpatwari.bsky.social. I'm among the skeptics of the 340B program as it currently operates, but it appears this proposed pilot would not address the major issues. jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...
jamanetwork.com
340B Drug Pricing
This Viewpoint presents the history of the Health Resources & Services Administration (HRSA) 340B Drug Pricing Program and 340B Rebate Model Pilot Program, summarizes their controversies and limit...
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Aaron Mitchell @thewonkologist.bsky.social · 01/06/2026
Presenting our new study at #ASCO26 right now! Provider profits on cancer drugs have grown 4-fold to $40 billion in the last decade and a half. @ascocancer.bsky.social @mskcancercenter.bsky.social @hannahrabrams.bsky.social @nihcm.bsky.social
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Aaron Mitchell @thewonkologist.bsky.social · 01/06/2026
Presenting at #ASCO26 now! Our new study: Bribes from the drug industry can lead oncologists to use WORSE treatments (not just better ones) @ascocancer.bsky.social @mskcancercenter.bsky.social @dusetzinas.bsky.social @commonwealthfund.org @nihcm.bsky.social @arnoldventures.bsky.social
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Kevin Griffith @assumenormality.bsky.social · 01/06/2026
New RCT evidence from @adrianna.bsky.social and coauthors testing effects of work requirements for SNAP Some enrollees get exemptions, others did not Work requirements had very small effects on employment, but large effects on enrollment Preview of what to expect in Medicaid next year #ARM26
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Aaron Mitchell @thewonkologist.bsky.social · 31/05/2026
Farewell #ARM26! #ASCO26, see you in about 5 hours! @ascocancer.bsky.social @academyhealth.bsky.social
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Theresa Kim, PhD, MS @tyk314.net · 30/05/2026
Hey, #ARM2026 attendees. Sorry I can't be with you in Seattle. Fellow some of these great health systems and health policy researchers and those in the know. If you want me to add you, feel free to comment here and I can. #hpss #hspr #hpsr #healthpolicy
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Aaron Mitchell @thewonkologist.bsky.social · 30/05/2026
I'll be presenting new findings at 2:15 PT today at #ARM26! Our study measured provider profits on cancer drugs (profits have increased, a lot) This looks like a great session, including other new findings on cancer care in MA. See you in ballroom 6C! academyhealth.confex.com/academyhealt...
academyhealth.confex.com
Tracing the Policy Pathways of Cancer Care: Spending, Treatment Access, and Administrative Burden
Cancer care in the United States is deeply influenced by the structure of private and public insurance programs, where benefit design, provider incentives, and administrative requirements shape both c...
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Adrianna McIntyre @adrianna.bsky.social · 30/05/2026
Excited to present preliminary results from a project that has been ongoing ~since I was a PhD student~ at today's late-breaking #ARM26 session — join us at 4p PT in rooms 613-614.
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Aaron Mitchell @thewonkologist.bsky.social · 27/05/2026
The webinar recording is now available, below. I'm also looking forward to presenting these findings on Medicare Advantage and cancer care at @academyhealth.bsky.social #ARM26, this weekend! cbiit.webex.com/recordingser...
cbiit.webex.com
Meet virtually with Cisco Webex. Anytime, anywhere, on any device.
Webex by Cisco is an AI-powered secure enterprise collaboration platform.
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Jonathan Howard @joho.bsky.social · 23/05/2026
Here’s how he blew off 19 kids killed by Covid in 1 month.
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Aaron Mitchell @thewonkologist.bsky.social · 22/05/2026
Next week at #ASCO26 @ascocancer.bsky.social I'll be presenting new evidence that industry COI influences which treatments oncologists prescribe...even for the non-so-good ones! www.asco.org/abstracts-pr...
asco.org
Association of drug industry payments to oncologists and use of guideline-preferred cancer treatments. - ASCO
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Aaron Mitchell @thewonkologist.bsky.social · 22/05/2026
Looking forward to presenting our new study at the @ascocancer.bsky.social annual meeting! We measured the recent, large increase in provider profits on cancer drugs: www.asco.org/abstracts-pr... @dusetzinas.bsky.social @sangerkatz.bsky.social @kffhealthnews.org @dylanlscott.bsky.social
asco.org
Trends in cancer drug revenue retained by providers under buy-and-bill reimbursement, 2010-2024. - ASCO
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Jonathan Howard @joho.bsky.social · 22/05/2026
Fixed it
Vinay Prasad:  Creating Medical Reversal
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Michael L. Barnett @mlbarnett.bsky.social · 22/05/2026
confirmed here by multiple sources!! another fun rumor is apparently the small and inexperienced firm taking over will subcontract the work back to ResDAC! I can feel the efficiency growing!
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Prof Gavin Yamey MD MPH @gavinyamey.bsky.social · 22/05/2026
Bhattacharya’s legacy The US had a “world-class Ebola lab in Frederick, Maryland, with the NIH,” designed to develop vaccines & treatments. The lab would normally be swinging into action. “But that lab was shuttered last year, with staff laid off abruptly”😢 www.theguardian.com/world/2026/m...
theguardian.com
US is ‘simply choosing not to stop’ Ebola outbreak after massive public health cuts, experts say
Hundreds of cases reported in the DRC after USAID has been dismantled and key scientific research canceled
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Aaron Mitchell @thewonkologist.bsky.social · 19/05/2026
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Aaron Mitchell @thewonkologist.bsky.social · 17/05/2026
My recent personal experience with this topic du jour: when my name appeared in a non-existent LLM-generated citation bsky.app/profile/thew...
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Aaron Mitchell @thewonkologist.bsky.social · 14/05/2026
I'll be presenting some of our recent work on Medicare Advantage and its impacts on cancer care cost and quality, 3pm EST TODAY! Part of ongoing NCI seminar series. Webinar registration at the link below: healthcaredelivery.cancer.gov/media/medica...
healthcaredelivery.cancer.gov
Medicare Advantage Webinar Series
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Aaron Mitchell @thewonkologist.bsky.social · 08/05/2026
It’s easy to forget how little oncology in the academic medical centers reflects what most patients experience. Across the whole system, only half of patients with lung cancer receive any treatment at all. jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...
jamanetwork.com
Rates of Systemic Treatment for Metastatic Non–Small Cell Lung Cancer Among Older Adults
This cohort study characterizes the prevalence of treatment for metastatic non–small cell lung cancer and predictors of its receipt over a time span ranging from when empiric cytotoxic regimens domina...
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Matthew Noe @noethematt.bsky.social · 03/05/2026
Kinda burying the lead here, NPR
At times during the interviews, Kennedy appeared to embrace the scheme as a way to help a wide range of kids harmed by street drug addiction and what he described as over-prescription of anxiety and depression medications.

But Kennedy also spoke specifically about his vision for Black children. After making the false claim that "every Black kid is now just standard put on Adderall, SSRIs, benzos, which are known to induce violence" Kennedy offered what he described as a solution.

"Those kids are going to have a chance to go somewhere and get reparented and live in a community," he said.
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Aaron Mitchell @thewonkologist.bsky.social · 23/04/2026
“A neurosurgery practice outside of Philadelphia went to arbitration after the health plan Highmark offered its standard payment of $2,660 for a diagnostic procedure to measure blood flow to the brain. An arbitrator awarded it $333,000 instead.” www.nytimes.com/2026/04/22/u... @nytimes.com
nytimes.com
A $440,000 Breast Reduction: How Doctors Cashed In on a Consumer Protection Law
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Aaron Mitchell @thewonkologist.bsky.social · 23/04/2026
“A neurosurgery practice outside of Philadelphia went to arbitration after the health plan Highmark offered its standard payment of $2,660 for a diagnostic procedure to measure blood flow to the brain. An arbitrator awarded it $333,000 instead.” www.nytimes.com/2026/04/22/u... @nytimes.com
nytimes.com
A $440,000 Breast Reduction: How Doctors Cashed In on a Consumer Protection Law
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Aaron Mitchell @thewonkologist.bsky.social · 18/04/2026
Accelerated approval makes sense in concept, but is failing in practice. It results in many drugs - especially cancer drugs - reaping huge profits for manufacturers despite proof of benefit for patients. Here’s how to fix it 👇🏼👇🏼👇🏼
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Aaron Mitchell @thewonkologist.bsky.social · 16/04/2026
New @icer-review.bsky.social whitepaper on FDA Accelerated Approval. This pathway is good in theory, and a failure in practice. Here's how to fix it! icer.org/news-insight... @yalecrrit.bsky.social @jsross119.bsky.social
icer.org
Institute for Clinical and Economic Review Releases White Paper on Accelerated Approval Pathway for Prescription Drugs - ICER
New paper, developed with input from diverse stakeholders, outlines policy options to strengthen the FDA pathway.
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Aaron Mitchell @thewonkologist.bsky.social · 09/04/2026
Story in @nature.com about this exact problem: www.nature.com/articles/d41...
nature.com
Hallucinated citations are polluting the scientific literature. What can be done?
Tens of thousands of publications from 2025 might include invalid references generated by AI, a Nature analysis suggests.
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ProPublica @propublica.org · 05/04/2026
Revlimid has its origin in a pill that cost patients $7.50 each. Decades later, the cancer drug costs more than $18,000 for a month’s supply — even though it still only costs about 25 cents to manufacture. (Published May 2025)
propublica.org
The Price of Remission: This Cancer Drug Saves Lives — but Costs a Fortune. I Wanted to Know Why.
When I was diagnosed with cancer, I set out to understand why a single pill of Revlimid cost the same as a new iPhone. I’ve covered high drug prices as a reporter for years. What I discovered shocked ...
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Kathleen Bachynski @bachynski.bsky.social · 03/04/2026
“My patient is refusing a drug studied in 170,000 people because of side effects that a 124,000-person analysis just confirmed do not exist — while injecting a compound studied in 14 humans, from unregulated sources, based on the recommendation of someone who profits from selling it.”
statnews.com
My patient would rather take a peptide than a statin. That reveals an uncomfortable truth in medicine
“The volume of evidence behind a therapy has become inversely correlated with public trust in it,” writes Vikas Patel.
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Sarah Karlin-Smith @sarahkarlin-smith.bsky.social · 02/04/2026
New report on the impacts of a PhRMA push to delay the time before a drug's price could be negotiated in Medicare: www.citizen.org/article/epic...
citizen.org
EPIC Act Would Be A Multi-Billion Dollar Pharma Windfall At The Expense of Seniors - Public Citizen
Key takeaways: Big Pharma is pushing to undermine Medicare drug price negotiation and let corporations price gouge for longer periods,…
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Aaron Mitchell @thewonkologist.bsky.social · 02/04/2026
Google's AI confusing the CDMRP with the NIH, and giving flatly wrong information on grant applications. (the CDMRP does not allow resubmissions)
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