Especially if the alternative is denying other people loads of relief (not only in the form of proven effective drugs that are taken off market, like Vioxx, but all the drugs that aren't even investigated because they fit in a class of drugs with known negative side effects).
Edit: misread your post. Yes, I do trust people to make decisions on efficacy v. risk. This would be even easier if we had a system that promoted the discussion of this information rather than one that effectively prohibited it. Merck should be able to openly say, "Hey guys, we have this great drug that is really effective at managing pain, plus it's non-narcotic. The only downside is, it increases your risk of heart attack by 50%. Talk to your doctor about it."
Especially if the alternative is denying other people loads of relief (not only in the form of proven effective drugs that are taken off market, like Vioxx, but all the drugs that aren't even investigated because they fit in a class of drugs with known negative side effects).
Edit: misread your post. Yes, I do trust people to make decisions on efficacy v. risk. This would be even easier if we had a system that promoted the discussion of this information rather than one that effectively prohibited it. Merck should be able to openly say, "Hey guys, we have this great drug that is really effective at managing pain, plus it's non-narcotic. The only downside is, it increases your risk of heart attack by 50%. Talk to your doctor about it."