Clinical trials have become a $24 billion industry that is reshaping every aspect of health care development and delivery in the United States and around the world. is the first book to give readers a behind-the-scenes look at the complicated world of clinical trials and how a multibillion-dollar industry of private companies conducting clinical trials with little oversight has quietly become a major part of the American medical establishment. O'Meara reveals what every health-conscious person needs to know about how drugs, devices, and procedures are tested and approved.