How Placebo Deception Can Infringe Autonomy

摘要

In “A Limited Defense of Clinical Placebo Deception” (Kolber 2007), I argued that, given our current understanding of placebo efficacy and patient preferences, we should not categorically prohibit physicians from using placebos deceptively. While Foddy (2009) supports my conclusion, he goes much further in his defense of placebo deception in ways that are unwarranted. I will limit my brief comments to Foddy’s discussion of autonomy. In particular, I will show why Foddy fails to establish his claim that the responsible use of placebo deception “is never a threat to patient autonomy” (4) and “does not diminish the patient’s autonomy at all” (4).