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State AIDS programs struggle as joblessness increases demand

Growing joblessness and shrinking state and federal budgets have exacerbated the financial burden on the government that provides prescription drug treatment to people with HIV/AIDS. "Now, many people with HIV are losing jobs, along with insurance, or discovering that they are infected at a time when the AIDS Drug Assistance Program — ADAP — they depend on is being overwhelmed by demands being made on it.

9 Jul 2010

New rules pave way for veterans' PTSD disability claims

The New York Times: Veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder who are seeking disability benefits will get a break when new rules go into effect as early as next week.

9 Jul 2010

Research finding uncovers alternative treatments for people with hereditary colorectal cancer

By solving the three-dimensional structure of a protein involved in repairing DNA errors, a group of McMaster University researchers have revealed new avenues to develop assessment tools and alternative treatments for people living with hereditary colorectal cancers.

9 Jul 2010

IRIC scientists identify vitamin B3 as potential antifungal treatment

A team of scientists from the Institute for Research in Immunology and Cancer (IRIC) of the University of Montreal have identified vitamin B3 as a potential antifungal treatment. Led by IRIC Principal Investigators Martine Raymond, Alain Verreault and Pierre Thibault, in collaboration with Alaka Mullick, from the Biotechnology Research Institute of the National Research Council Canada, the study is the subject of a recent article in Nature Medicine.

9 Jul 2010

Emotional well-being predicts adolescents' physical health: Study

Happier youths are also healthier youths, according to Emily Shaffer-Hudkins and her team, from the University of South Florida in the US. Adolescents' positive emotions and moods, as well as their satisfaction with life, could be more important than their anxiety or depression levels for predicting their physical health, they argue.

9 Jul 2010

Australian, Vietnamese researchers develop simple tool for identifying individuals at high risk of Type 2 diabetes

Australian and Vietnamese researchers have estimated the current prevalence of Type 2 diabetes in Vietnam, and have developed a simple tool for identifying individuals at high risk.

9 Jul 2010

Move to have businesses manage Medicaid is triggering concern

The Washington Post: Since Congress passed the health overhaul, businesses that manage Medicaid "are rushing to get a foothold in states that outsource Medicaid. … But the experience in some states suggests pitfalls ahead. A recent report found that 2.7 million children on Medicaid in nine states, most of them states that outsource Medicaid, are not receiving required screenings and immunizations.

9 Jul 2010

Pregnant teenagers at higher risk of preterm delivery

Pregnant women aged 14-17 years are at higher risk of preterm birth and of having a child with low-birth-weight, especially if they are having their second child. Researchers writing in the open access journal BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth demonstrate this association and call for better health education and the promotion of contraception after a teenager has given birth for the first time.

9 Jul 2010

Media outlets examine efforts to tackle HIV/AIDS worldwide

Ahead of the International AIDS Conference, set for July 18-23 in Vienna, Austria, Reuters features an interview with Gottfried Hirnschall, the new director of the WHO's HIV Department, who speaks of the need for current funds for the global HIV/AIDS programs to be used more efficiently to achieve universal access to treatment for all HIV/AIDS patients.

9 Jul 2010

WaferGen Biosystems announces closing of $7.2M registered direct offering

WaferGen Biosystems, Inc., a leading developer of state-of-the-art genomic analysis systems, today announced the closing of a $7.2 million registered direct offering. The amount raised includes $1 million from the Chairman and CEO, Alnoor Shivji, and approximately $500,000 in the aggregate from four other members of the board of directors of WaferGen.

9 Jul 2010

U.N. report recommends changes for fragmented global aid system

"A proliferation of aid agencies, donors, and projects is fragmenting the global aid system, increasing transaction costs, and weakening efforts to reduce poverty and poor health," according to the U.N.'s recent World Economic and Social Survey (.pdf), BMJ News reports.

9 Jul 2010

Biomagnetics, LANL collaborate to develop device for tuberculosis diagnosis

Biomagnetics Diagnostics Corp., a developer of revolutionary technology for diagnostic systems for HIV, hepatitis, tuberculosis and malaria detection, today announced the signing of an agreement with Los Alamos National Security, LLC where Los Alamos National Laboratory's scientific and engineering staffs will attempt to identify new potential human tuberculosis biomarkers and will develop a validated assay to detect human tuberculosis using a currently known biomarker to be used in combination with the waveguide-based optical biosensor platform.

9 Jul 2010

Woman sues California Blue Shield for alleged safety-net insurance overcharges

Los Angeles Times: A Los Angeles woman is suing Blue Shield of California for allegedly overcharging policyholders for safety-net insurance for the jobless or sick. "Amalia Lample said in her lawsuit that Blue Shield, the state's second-largest not-for-profit insurer, knowingly exceeded maximum insurance rates set by the state and falsely reported to regulators that the charges stayed within official guidelines.

9 Jul 2010

VBA acquires BISNet software from ClearBenefits

Vantage Benefits Administrators (VBA) is proud to announce the acquisition of the BISNet software and all its Intellectual Property from ClearBenefits, Inc. to strategically enhance our Unified Point of Service administration offerings. BISNet, Inc., a fully owned subsidiary of Vantage Benefits Administrators, will reemerge as a world class benefits enrollment and administration system provider on July 15, 2010.

9 Jul 2010

Medicare agency releases data on hospital performance

MedPage Today: "The public can now review data on the quality of outpatient care provided by individual hospitals at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services' Hospital Compare website. The site previously contained only data on inpatient care quality. All the data are derived from records of Medicare patients treated at more than 3,600 hospitals nationwide."

9 Jul 2010

iPierian announces closing of $22M Series B equity financing round

iPierian, Inc., the leading biopharmaceutical company using patient-derived induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) for drug discovery, today announced the closing of a $22 million Series B equity financing. The financing round was led by new investor Google Ventures, and was joined by Mitsubishi UFJ Capital and ATEL Ventures. All current investors also participated, including: Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, Highland Capital Partners, MPM Capital and FinTech Global Capital.

9 Jul 2010

Qualaquin for treatment of night time leg cramps leads to serious side effects, FDA warns

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today warned that the unapproved use of the malaria drug Qualaquin (quinine sulfate) to treat night time leg cramps has resulted in serious side effects and prompted the manufacturer to develop a risk management plan aimed at educating health care professionals and patients about the potential risks.

9 Jul 2010

Officials look to stop 'medicalization' to stem health care costs

The Florida Times-Union: Stopping the "medicalization" of good health is being targeted again by economists and policymakers as a way to stem health care costs. "If Americans would stop thinking of certain problems in a medical context, experts argue, it might chip away at the more than $2 trillion the nation spends annually on health care.

9 Jul 2010

Hospitals struggle to escape unsuccessful Wall Street wagers

"Hospitals nationwide are tangling with Wall Street to get out of disastrous wagers that have complicated their financial problems," The Wall Street Journal reports.

9 Jul 2010

PharmAthene reports progress in lyophilized rPA anthrax vaccine development program

PharmAthene, Inc., a biodefense company developing medical countermeasures against biological and chemical threats, announced today that it continues to make solid progress in its lyophilized recombinant Protective Antigen (rPA) anthrax vaccine development program. The Company has recently demonstrated that its lyophilized rPA vaccine candidate is structurally stable and potent at various temperatures up to and including 70 degrees centigrade.

9 Jul 2010