Breaking Health News

Minister For Older People In Face-to-face Meeting With Older People And Service Providers In The Northwest, Ireland
"The expected increase in the numbers of older people in the population in the years ahead will present great opportunities for Irish society", the Minister for Older People and Health Promotion, �ine Brady TD said yesterday in Sligo (Thursday, 11th March 2010). "There will be more older people in Ireland in the future and we must take a much more positive view and grasp the many opportunities that the increase in the numbers of people aged 65 and over will present to us as a society," the Minister said...

Statement By The Minister For Health And Children, Mary Harney, T.D.- Tallaght Hospital Services, Ireland
The central and over-riding priority in all aspects of health care, in every hospital, at every meeting and in every last detail of administration is the interest of patients. Patients' interests and standards of care must come first. For that reason the review of unread X-rays is being given top priority by the hospital. The investigation of circumstances that gave rise to this situation will be fully addressed through the independent review announced by the HSE...

100 Percent Of Primary Care Doctors In Denmark Use Electronic Medical Records
All primary care doctors in Denmark use electronic medical records and 98 percent have the ability to electronically manage patient care-including ordering prescriptions, drafting notes about patient visits, and sending appointment reminders. In addition, almost all medical communication between primary care doctors, specialists, and hospitals is electronic, according to a new Commonwealth Fund profile of the Danish health care system...

Safely Lowers 'Bad' Cholesterol In Statin-Treated Patients
People whose "bad" cholesterol and risk of future heart disease stay too high despite cholesterol-lowering statin therapy can safely lower it by adding a drug that mimics the action of thyroid hormone. In a report published in the Mar. 11, issue of the New England Journal of Medicine, Johns Hopkins and Swedish researchers say an experimental drug called eprotirome lowered cholesterol up to 32 percent in those already on statins, an effect equal to that expected from doubling the statin drug doses, without harmful side effects...

Johns Hopkins Doctor And Disaster Expert Says Resource Problems In Haiti Required Difficult Ethical Decision-Making
In an essay published in this week's issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association, a Johns Hopkins emergency physician outlines how he and other physicians who worked in Haiti after the earthquake had to make emotionally difficult ethical decisions daily in the face of a crushing wave of patients and inadequate medical resources. Thomas D. Kirsch, M.D., M.P.H...

Third Set Of 2009 Pesticide Residue Figures Released, UK
The Pesticide Residues Committee today published its third quarterly report for samples collected in 2009. The report found that the majority of foods had no detectable residues and those that did contain pesticides were not likely to be harmful to health. Tests found that 656 out of 911 samples of 14 different foods tested had no detectable residues. Also, 248 samples contained levels below the maximum residue level (MRL) - the legally permitted amount...

UNICEF To Provide Support To Nearly One Million Children Affected By Earthquake In Chile
UNICEF will provide assistance to the estimated one million children and their families affected by the earthquake in Chile which struck on 27 February. It is unclear how much more damage the second quake today has caused, but the first quake followed by a tsunami caused widespread damage and over 500 deaths. Six regions, home to some 80 per cent of the population of Chile were affected by the quake. The government had declared these regions as "catastrophe zones". The worst affected areas are some of the poorest in the country...

Health Committee Report On Social Care - UNISON Response, UK
UNISON, the UK's largest public sector trade union, today warned that measures to reform social care will be undermined by widespread cuts taking place at councils across the country. The union is calling for investment in the social care workforce, including better pay and conditions, to improve recruitment and retention in the sector. Helga Pile, UNISON National Officer for Social Care said: "This report recommends making choice for care users a priority...

No Time For Complacency On Smoking, Warns Confederation Chair
The chair of the NHS Confederation, Bryan Stoten, has used National No-Smoking Day to warn against any complacency in the efforts to reduce smoking. Mr Stoten also said that, despite the financial pressures currently affecting public services, it was crucial for the NHS and society did not forget about the cost and harm of smoking. He said: "Enormous public health success has been achieved by bringing smoking prevalence down to 21 per cent three years earlier than the Government's own target...

NHS Confederation Responds To Panorama Programme
NHS Confederation chair Bryan Stoten responds to yesterday's Panorama programme 'Trust Us, We're an NHS Hospital'. Bryan Stoten, Chair of the NHS Confederation, stated: "On its own, self assessment is an incomplete measure of hospital performance. It needs to be validated and augmented by a range of other methods, which could include peer review, planned and unplanned inspections, and better use of the large range of data that is already being collected by the large number of regulators which oversee the NHS...

Regulatory Affairs Workload At Drug Development Firms Has Increased Dramatically, According To Tufts Center For The Study Of Drug Development
A growing volume of global drug development and commercialization activity during the past decade has dramatically increased the workload for regulatory affairs professionals at pharmaceutical and biotech companies, according to a study recently completed by the Tufts Center for the Study of Drug Development. The study, the first systematic assessment of global regulatory affairs performance, found that the regulatory affairs function within drug development companies has grown steadily, with most departments tending to hire from within...

Short Term High-Intensity Interval Training (HIT) As Effective As Moderate Long Term Endurance Exercise, Study
The excuse that there is not enough time to exercise effectively is beginning to wear thin according to evidence from a study by scientists in Canada who found that short term high-intensity interval training (HIT) can deliver in significantly less time the same health benefits as moderate long term "endurance" training. The scientists who did the study are based at McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario. A paper on it is about to come out in print in the The Journal of Physiology, although an online issue has been available to view since January...

Omni Bio Pharmaceutical, Inc. Hosts Panel On Alpha-1-Antitrypsin ("AAT") At 8th World Congress On Trauma, Shock, Inflammation And Sepsis
Omni Bio Pharmaceutical, Inc. ("Omni Bio") (OTCBB: OMBP) announced that its acting Chief Executive Officer, Dr. Charles A. Dinarello, will moderate a panel at the 8th World Congress on Trauma, Shock, Inflammation and Sepsis ("TSIS") (http://www.tsis2010.org) in Munich, Germany on Friday, March 12, 2010. The panel on Alpha-1 Antitrypsin ("AAT") as a Novel Therapeutic in Inflammatory Diseases will feature the following presentations: "Introduction and Background for AAT Safety in Humans and Experimental Models of AAT Protection," by Dr...

In Cancer Diagnostics, The Profit Is In Test Services
The majority of new cancer tests coming to market are proprietary assays with the test services being provided by certified labs opened by the IVD companies that developed the tests. All the major reference labs in North America and Europe are also offering a slew of in-house developed diagnostic tests. This shift is leading to greater profits for those companies offering test services, notes healthcare market research publisher Kalorama Information in its new report "The Worldwide Market for Cancer Diagnostics, 4th Edition." Test services are not a new business model...

Statement By Hanys' President Daniel Sisto On Launch Of "Cutzilla"
"With so much focus on recent political tribulations here in Albany, it has become increasingly difficult to focus attention on policy and budgetary issues that we believe are far more important to the lives and livelihood of everyday New Yorkers. "HANYS is deeply disturbed by the thousands of health care jobs that have already been lost in the wake of six recent rounds of budget cuts and taxes totaling more than $4 billion. We are troubled more so by the loss of critical health care services that are occurring in many communities throughout the state as a result of these actions...

FDA Issues Warning On Counterfeit Surgical Mesh
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today warned health care providers and consumers about counterfeit surgical mesh being distributed in the United States under the C. R. Bard/Davol brand name. Surgical mesh products are used to reinforce soft tissue where weakness exists. The warning is of particular significance to health care professionals and their patients with surgical mesh implants as well as hospitals and surgical centers, operating room medical professionals and staff, and purchasing and risk managers...

Actor Kulvinder Ghir Joins Forces With Transplant Patients In New TV Campaign To Encourage More Asian Donors
Established actor, Kulvinder Ghir has joined forces with NHS Blood and Transplant to lend further support to a new campaign designed to increase the number of people from BME communities on the NHS Organ Donor Register. The actor features alongside patients with first-hand experience of organ donation and transplantation to create a series of powerful and informative television commercials for both the African-Caribbean and the South Asian community...

600 Million-Year-Old Origins Of Vision Discovered By Scientists At UCSB
By studying the hydra, a member of an ancient group of sea creatures that is still flourishing, scientists at UC Santa Barbara have made a discovery in understanding the origins of human vision. The finding is published in this week's issue of the Proceedings of the Royal Society B, a British journal of biology. Hydra are simple animals that, along with jellyfish, belong to the phylum cnidaria. Cnidarians first emerged 600 million years ago. "We determined which genetic 'gateway,' or ion channel, in the hydra is involved in light sensitivity," said senior author Todd H...

TAU On Track To Prevent "Sudden Cardiac Arrest"
Sudden Cardiac Arrest syndrome (SCA) is poorly understood, but it's a real danger for the otherwise young and healthy. For no apparent reason, the heart suddenly stops beating, and without treatment death may follow within minutes. It's why some athletes drop dead on the track and why a young man, without any warning, suddenly dies while sitting at his desk. SCA accounts for approximately 300,000 deaths per year in the U.S. Dr. Joel Hirsch of Tel Aviv University's Department of Biochemistry has teamed up with Prof...

Lack Of Confidence In National Hurricane Response Planning: Survey
According to a study recently completed by an LSU group charged with conducting studies on improving hurricane crisis communication in coastal communities, many families have a well-developed hurricane response plan of their own but have little faith in the preparation developed at higher government levels...

New Imaging Technology Brings Trace Chemicals Into Focus
Arizona State Univeristy scientist N.J. Tao and his colleagues at the Biodesign Institute have hit on a new, versatile method to significantly improve the detection of trace chemicals important in such areas as national security, human health and the environment. Tao's team was able to detect and identify tiny particles of the explosive trinitrotoluene or TNT - each weighing less than a billionth of a gram - on the ridges and canals of a fingerprint...

The Effectiveness Of A New Oral Treatment Could Mean An End To Lice
French medical researchers from the AP-HP (Henri Mondor Hospital and Avicenne Hospital) and Inserm (Unit 738 "Models and methods for therapeutic evaluation of chronic illnesses" and CIC 202, at Tours) have recently demonstrated the effectiveness of a new molecule in the fight against lice. Faced with the emergence of increasing resistance to conventional treatments by these parasites, this new medication represents a real therapeutic alternative which is effective in 95% of cases. This work has been published in the March 11th edition of The New England Journal of Medicine...

Alzheimer's Test That Can Be Administered In Family Practitioners' Offices Offers Better Opportunities For Early Detection
Early detection is key to more effective treatment for Alzheimer's disease and other forms of cognitive impairment, and new research shows that a test developed at the University of Tennessee is more than 95 percent effective in detecting cognitive abnormalities associated with these diseases. The test, called CST -- for computerized self test -- was designed to be both effective and relatively simple for medical professionals to administer and for patients to take. Rex Cannon, an adjunct research assistant professor of psychology at UT Knoxville, and Dr...

Moderate Use Of Video Games Can Be A Very Useful Educational Tool For Teaching Children
Video games can have a very positive influence in the education of children, and, when used in moderation, they do not harm children's academic performance. This conclusion emerges from research conducted by Angeles Llorca Diez from the Department of Didactics of Musical, Plastic and Corporal Expression at the University of Granada, and directed by professors M Dolores Alvarez Rodriguez (University of Granada) and M Angeles Diez Sanchez (University of Salamanca)...

W.Va. Panel Sends Ultrasound Abortion Bill To Full House
The West Virginia House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday approved a bill (HB 4517), including two new amendments, that would alter an existing state abortion law by requiring that that women be able to view an ultrasound image of their fetus before an abortion, the Charleston Daily Mail reports (Rivard, Charleston Daily Mail, 3/11). According to the bill text, an ultrasound would be available when "the standard of care dictates" (Bill text, 2/16). The requirement would only apply in cases in which the provider has determined that an ultrasound is medically necessary...

Home-Administered Misoprostol Safe Abortion Option For Women Up To 63 Days Pregnant, Study Finds
A team of Swedish researchers concludes that taking misoprostol at home as part of a medical abortion regimen is a safe option for women who are 50 to 63 days pregnant, according to a study published in the journal Human Reproduction, Reuters reports. The study's authors said that their research is the first published report to examine at-home medical abortion in women who were more than 49 days pregnant. In the U.S., women have been permitted to take physician-prescribed misoprostol at home since 2000...

Videos Examine Debate Over Abortion Debate In Health Reform, International Women's Day
The following summarizes selected women's health-related videos. Uncertainty Surrounds 'Stupak Dozen': On Wednesday, MSNBC host Rachel Maddow challenged Rep. Bart Stupak's (D-Mich.) claim that he has about twelve lawmakers who will vote against the Senate health reform bill if it doesn't include more restrictions on abortion coverage. According to a senior House leadership aide, an informal whip count found that only four or five House members are willing to back Stupak, Maddow reported (Maddow, "The Rachel Maddow Show," MSNBC, 3/10)...

Sebelius Attacks Health Insurers, They Fight Back
Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius "pleaded with insurance companies on Wednesday to scrap their campaign against President Obama's health care bill and to work with the White House to pass it," The New York Times reports. "Speaking at the annual policy conference of America's Health Insurance Plans, a trade group, Ms. Sebelius said, 'It's not too late to work on this issue together, for insurance companies to come to the table and work with us.' In addition, Ms...

Hospitals Cope With Losing Money
Kentucky's Jewish Hospital and St. Mary's HealthCare is eliminating 500 jobs this month. The layoffs represent the first large-scale cuts in a Louisville-area hospital system since the recession began. Louisville Courier-Journal: The cuts come because of "lower patient volume and a growing number of uninsured patients brought on by the lingering recession." They are only one part of a cost-cutting program the hospital enacted...

Study Questions Frequency Of Heart Angiograms
A recent study raises questions about the frequency of doctors' use of elective heart angiograms, which showed no disease in almost 40 percent of patients. BusinessWeek reports: "Doctors may be sending patients too quickly for elective angiograms to detect heart disease, exposing them to radiation and driving up U.S. health-care costs, a study suggests. An analysis of records of about 400,000 patients concluded that 37...

State Overhaul Fears, Rising Costs, Medical School Expansions
The New York Times: "The General Assembly became the first state legislature to approve a measure that bucks any effort by President Obama and Congress to carry out a national health care overhaul in individual states." Numerous Democrats joined the Republican majority to support the measure 80-17 in the House of Delegates (3/10). Boston Herald: "A staunchly pro-free enterprise business group yesterday embraced price controls for the state's health-care industry, saying sykrocketing medical expenses have reached a 'crisis point' that's financially crushing small businesses...

Today's OpEds: Rove On Reconciliation, An Imagined Plea From Kennedy, Vulnerable Hispanics
The Trouble With 'Reconciliation' The Wall Street Journal House Democrats would be foolish to trust a process that has deeply alienated the American public. Republicans know that and are determined to make House Democrats think hard about the price they will pay for passing this health-care monstrosity (Karl Rove, 3/11). Heaven Can Wait: The Health-Care Edition The Washington Post My fellow Americans, don't be scared - this is Ted Kennedy with a final word about health-care reform. ...

Former President Clinton, Bill Gates Encourage U.S. Global Health Investment At Senate Foreign Relations Committee Hearing
Former President Bill Clinton and Bill Gates, co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, said Wednesday at a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing "that U.S. investments in fighting [HIV/]AIDS, malaria and other diseases in underdeveloped nations save lives and play a vital role in improving America's image abroad," the Associated Press reports. Clinton and Gates "appeared before the panel to discuss U.S. investments in global health and to push for continued support of government programs that address infectious and preventable diseases," the news service writes...

Obama Renews Promise To Assist With Haiti's Earthquake Recovery During Preval's Visit To The White House
"President Barack Obama on Wednesday renewed America's commitment to the recovery and reconstruction of earthquake-devastated Haiti, telling visiting President Rene Preval he knows the crisis has not passed," the Associated Press/TIME reports (Feller, 3/10). According to the New York Times, Obama and Preval "stood side by side in a ceremony in the Rose Garden, after a private meeting in the Oval Office, where Mr. Obama received an update on conditions in Haiti." Preval said he was grateful for the "massive, spontaneous, generous help" from the U.S. after the earthquake...

AIDS 2010 To Highlight Epidemic In Eastern Europe, Central Asia Regions
AIDS 2010, the International AIDS Conference to be held July 18-23 in Vienna, Austria, will "highlight the situation in Eastern Europe and Central Asia, regions experiencing fast growing [HIV/AIDS] epidemics largely through unsafe injecting drug use," conference organizers announced Wednesday, Agence France-Presse reports. Though the number of new HIV cases worldwide has been on the decline, "infection rates are continuing to rise in some parts of the world, especially Eastern Europe and Central Asia. Here, HIV prevalence has almost doubled since 2001," the AFP writes...

More U.S. Investment In Diplomacy, Development Needed, Say Former Military Leaders
A group of former U.S. military leaders have joined "recent calls by Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Adm. Michael Mullen to expand U.S. civilian capacities to reduce dependence on the military," Politico's Laura Rozen reports on her blog. The letter to Congress, released by the U.S...

Opinions: Haiti Corruption; Financial Sector Tax, G8 Promises; Investing In Women
Preval's Response To Corruption Queries Is 'A Public Relations Debacle' A Washington Post editorial reflects on Haitian President Rene Preval's response to U.S. policy makers' queries "about the perils of corruption and what measures the Haitian government might devise to minimize misuse and theft of the billions of dollars in recovery assistance flowing into the country and the billions more expected" during his visit this week to Washington D.C. "Surprisingly, he seems utterly unprepared to discuss the matter," the editorial notes...

Also In Global Health News: WFP In Somalia; South Africa's HIV/AIDS Plan; Zimbabwe's Food Needs; Medical Personnel, Vaccines In Bangladesh; More
WFP Agrees To Cooperate With Probe Of Its Operations In Somalia The World Food Program (WFP) "said Thursday it will cooperate with any independent probe into its food operations in Somalia, after a report found that up to half the food aid intended for the nation's hungry people does not reach its destination," the Associated Press reports. The agency has also agreed "not to engage with transport contractors that the report alleges were involved in arms trading," according to the news service. The report is scheduled to be presented to the U.N...

Miami Children's Hospital Selects Toshiba Vascular X-Ray Equipment For Hybrid Catheterization Lab
In hybrid catheterization procedures it is crucial that the imaging system provides the flexibility to quickly and easily access both the patient and ancillary equipment. To form its new hybrid catheterization suite, Miami Children's Hospital, a pioneer in hybrid procedures, recently installed Toshiba America Medical System's InfinixTM CF-i bi-plane system with the new CAT-880B hybrid catheterization table...

DRC: Thousands Of Displaced Civilians Trapped By Conflict, Wounded Unable To Reach Hospitals In Hauts Plateaux, South Kivu
Medical humanitarian organization Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) is deeply concerned by the rapidly worsening situation in the isolated area of Hauts Plateaux in the region of Uvira, South Kivu, in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Thousands of civilians are trapped by conflict that has been raging in the area since the beginning of February 2010 between the Congolese army (FARDC), FDLR rebels and various armed groups...

NATO Statement Endangers Patients In Afghanistan
The international medical humanitarian organization Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) today strongly objected to a recent statement by NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen, in which he implied that nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) should be the "soft power" component to military strategy. In conflict areas, MSF never works alongside, or partners with, any military strategy. The organization's complete independence and neutrality is what helps negotiate access to populations in need of emergency medical assistance...

Award Fails To Recognise Challenges We Face Say Scottish Dentists
Dr Robert Kinloch, Chair of the Scottish Dental Practice Committee, has branded the announcement of a 0.9 per cent increase to item of service fees for independent contractor dentists in Scotland as a major disappointment that fails to recognise the significant challenges dentists are trying to overcome. The Doctors' and Dentists' Review Body recommended a 1.44 per cent increase to the NHS dental fee scale, a recommendation intended to produce no uplift to dentists' pay...

I Have Colon Polyps: Now What?
M. D. Anderson Cancer Center are encouraging men and women to learn more about colon polyps and how they affect a person's risks for cancer. "Finding out you have colon polyps doesn't have to be frightening," said Gottumukkala S. Raju, M.D., professor in the Department of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition at M. D. Anderson. "Most colon polyps are not cancer. Yet, certain kinds of polyps may make you more likely to develop colon cancer." The colon is part of the large intestine. A colon polyp is a growth on the inside lining of the colon...

Technology May Reduce Need For Repeat Cancer Surgery
Every year more than 100,000 women in the United States undergo a lumpectomy, a conservative procedure to remove cancerous tumors while preserving the breast. The surgeon's goal is to attain a tumor-free, or negative, surgical margin the first time they operate. Current surgical tools may cause heat damage to the tissue samples needed for examination by a pathologist in order to identify the presence of cancerous cells on the edges of tumors...

Home SpermCheck Test Helps Couples Hoping To Conceive Better Understand Infertility Issues
Infertility affects between 10 and 15 percent of couples worldwide. Surprisingly, problems with male fertility account for approximately 50 percent of infertility cases. A new home test kit based on a protein in sperm discovered by University of Virginia Health System cell biologist John C. Herr, PhD, can assist couples in determining if a man's sperm count is normal, low, or very low. SpermCheck Fertility recently underwent clinical and consumer studies to evaluate its accuracy and ease of use...

Abbott Seeks FDA Approval Of A New Six-Month 45-mg Formulation Of Lupron(R) Depot For The Palliative Treatment Of Advanced Prostate Cancer
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has accepted for review the supplemental new drug application (sNDA) of a new six-month 45-mg formulation of Lupron® Depot (leuprolide acetate for depot suspension) for use in the palliative treatment of advanced prostate cancer. Palliative treatment helps to relieve symptoms associated with advanced prostate cancer. Lupron Depot works by suppressing the production of the hormone testosterone...

PSA Test Reduces Prostate Cancer Deaths By 40%
When it comes to the documented 40 percent effectiveness of PSA testing in preventing death from prostate cancer, neither the American Cancer Society nor the discoverer of the PSA protein, Richard Ablin, are telling the public the complete story. "The American Cancer Society is a 'false prophet' when it comes to telling the truth about the effectiveness of the PSA test," said ZERO's CEO Skip Lockwood. "Dr. Otis Brawley disregards scientific data about the value of the PSA test in saving lives...

BioMerieux Launches Industry-First Vancomycin-Resistant Enterococci (VRE) Screening Tool
bioMerieux a world leader in the field of in vitro diagnostics announced the launch of the first Food and Drug Administration (FDA) cleared chromID™ VRE, a simple and cost-effective solution in the struggle against vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE). chromID VRE is the first to receive an FDA 510(k) clearance for the qualitative detection of Enterococcus faecium and Enterococcus faecalis showing acquired resistance to vancomycin in stool specimens. The product can be used as an aid to identify, prevent, and control VRE colonization in healthcare settings...

Study Reinforces Role Of AED Vimpat (Lacosamide) (C-V) As Add-On Treatment For POS
UCB has announced that the antiepileptic drug (AED) Vimpat® (lacosamide) (C-V) demonstrated significantly fewer partial-onset seizures versus placebo in adults living with epilepsy, according to a Phase III clinical study published online in Epilepsia. This study was one of three that supported the approval of Vimpat by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2008 for use as an add-on therapy for the treatment of partial-onset seizures in people with epilepsy who are 17 years and older. Previous studies have demonstrated that Vimpat has a novel mechanism of action...

House Dems Discuss Abortion, Other Non-Budget Issues While Awaiting CBO Score On Health Reform
On Wednesday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said lawmakers are focusing on resolving issues that fall outside the scope of the budget reconciliation bill -- legislation Democrats are drafting that would include changes to the Senate health reform bill (HR 3590), CQ Today reports. While Democrats are waiting for the Congressional Budget Office to score the various provisions in the budget reconciliation bill, lawmakers are "meeting on an ongoing basis to discuss non-CBO issues," she said. She added that she did not know when the CBO score would be available...

Newsweek Examines Role Of New Female Condom In Efforts To Combat Spread Of HIV In D.C.
Women's health experts are watching closely to see whether a recent grant to provide no-cost female condoms in Washington, D.C., will "really make a difference" in the area's HIV/AIDS rate among women, Newsweek's Kate Dailey writes. The goal of the program is to empower women to take control of their own health and safety. The $500,000 grant from the MAC AIDS Fund will allow health centers in the district to promote and distribute the latest version of the female condom, FC2, which FDA approved in March 2009...

Antiabortion Amendments Stalling Unrelated Bills In Ky. House
Two Republican members of Kentucky's House are attaching antiabortion-rights amendments to several unrelated bills that are awaiting a chamber vote, a move that is threatening to derail changes related to children's Medicaid coverage, among other things, the Lexington Herald-Leader reports. The amendments -- sponsored by Reps. David Floyd and Tim Moore -- would require abortion providers to conduct an ultrasound and show the woman the image. The amendments also would require counseling prior to an abortion. As of Tuesday evening, at least six bills were stalled because of the amendments...

Gonorrhea Cases Rise Sharply In Alaska
Alaska health officials have reported that the state's gonorrhea rates increased by 69% in 2009 after remaining steady for years, the Anchorage Daily News reports. Susan Jones of the Alaska Department of Health and Social Services said the increase is the biggest one-year jump since the 1970s. Gonorrhea is sexually transmitted and can lead to pelvic inflammatory disease, infertility and miscarriages in women; eye problems in newborns; and infections in men. It is frequently accompanied by chlamydia and can be treated with antibiotics (Shinohara, Anchorage Daily News, 3/10)...

Abortion-Rights Advocates Have 'Right To Hate' Woman's Decision To Describe Abortion On Twitter, Opinion Piece Says
March 11, 2010 — Abortion-rights supporters "who came from generations where women had no legal abortion choices understand how precious the right to choose is," Mary Ann Sorrentino -- who served as executive director of Planned Parenthood of Southern New England from 1977 to 1987 -- writes in a Salon opinion piece. However, 27-year-old Angie Jackson's decision "to use Twitter as a public stage for her private decision to terminate a pregnancy" through medical abortion, is "[a]t its worst, ... self-serving, exhibitionist and selfish," Sorrentino says...

Health Bill Deal 'Close' Though Some Democrats - And All Republicans - Hold Out
Congressional Democrats, reportedly closing in on a final health reform agreement, are seeking to alleviate concerns of reluctant members. The Associated Press: "It will come down to a phenomenal effort by congressional leaders and the White House to win over skittish lawmakers after a year of incendiary debate ...

PhRMA Spends $6.3 Lobbying In Fourth Quarter, Slight Increase From Year Before
The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America spent $6.3 million lobbying Congress and other government arms on health care in the fourth quarter of 2009, The Associated Press reports. PhRMA "spent just 2 percent more than the $6.17 million it paid out for lobbying in the year-ago period. The group's members include drug giants Pfizer Inc., Merck & Co., Johnson & Johnson and more than two dozen other U.S. and foreign companies...

Does Medicare 'Doughnut Hole' Spur Increase In Foreign Drug Imports?
Medill Reports: "Unless federal legislation closes the Medicare coverage gap colloquially known as the 'doughnut hole,' seniors may opt for online drug imports to alleviate steep prescription costs. ... 'As seniors start falling into the doughnut hole, they are going online to find deals on prescription drugs, whether they're based in the U.S. or in other countries,' said Gabriel Levitt, vice president of PharmacyChecker.com LLC, a leader in the evaluation of online and mail-order pharmacies in both the U.S. and abroad...

Cost Of Clinical Negligence Claims Rises Sharply, UK
An analysis of clinical negligence claims costs made against doctors has shown an exceptionally sharp rise in the size of claims in England and Wales. The Medical Protection Society (MPS) - which handles medical negligence claims brought against GPs and private doctors - said the total value of reported claims which have not yet been settled leapt by 40% in 2009. The impact was the greatest amongst the largest claims - typically these are claims involving serious neurological injury combined with long life expectancy...

Survey: Employers Plan To Shift More Health Costs To Workers
News outlets report on new trends in health insurance for employers. The Washington Post: "Most big employers plan to shift a larger share of health-care costs to their workers next year, according to a survey to be released Thursday. ... Meanwhile, employees at many companies can expect significantly higher premiums, deductibles and co-payments, according to the annual survey by the National Business Group on Health, a coalition of big employers, and Towers Watson, a consulting firm that advises companies on employee benefits...

Our Response To Health Committee's Social Care Report, UK
Responding to the publication of the Health Committee's report on Social Care, Hilary Evans, Age Concern and Help the Aged's Head of Public Affairs, said: 'With the debate on social care raging, the publication of this report is extremely timely. In the midst of the political bickering it serves as a reminder that millions of older people and their families are being let down by a crumbling care system that is in desperate need of reform...