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New drug to safeguard against epidemic and pandemic flu strains

CSIRO scientists have helped to design a new drug to safeguard against epidemic and pandemic flu strains – as published in Science today.

22 Feb 2013

Feds outline what insurers must cover

The final rule on essential health benefits, issued yesterday, defines what must be covered in health plans sold in online marketplaces beginning this fall, including prescription benefits and mental health services, and prohibits discrimination based on age or pre-existing medical conditions.

22 Feb 2013

Medicaid expansion divides GOP governors

Florida Gov. Rick Scott is the latest Republican executive to reverse his opposition to the health law's Medicaid expansion. Some other fervent opponents, however -- among them, Rick Perry of Texas and Bobby Jindal of Louisiana -- continue to hold the line.

22 Feb 2013

Gov. Scott's Medicaid decision riles conservatives

The Florida governor's move to expand Medicaid under the health law disappoints some of his supporters, but one newspaper praises the decision.

22 Feb 2013

Evolution of PEPFAR necessary for continued success

PEPFAR has "met or even surpassed most" of its "bold goals," including "saving the lives of millions of people; supporting the scale-up of HIV prevention, care, and treatment; and strengthening systems and policies for the HIV response," Robert Black of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health writes in a Lancet opinion piece, noting the release of the Institute of Medicine's (IOM) "Evaluation of PEPFAR" on Wednesday.

22 Feb 2013

Blog, forthcoming paper examine PEPFAR's 'financial flows'

Noting the release of the Institute of Medicine's PEPFAR evaluation and "our own work-in-progress on PEPFAR's value for money and data management," Victoria Fan, a research fellow at the Center for Global Development (CGD), and Rachel Silverman, a research assistant at CGD, highlight "two focus areas that ... are the subject of a forthcoming CGD policy paper on PEPFAR's financial flows" in a post on CGD's "Global Health Policy" blog.

22 Feb 2013

Unanswered questions about universal health coverage remain

Noting the WHO meeting on universal health coverage held earlier this week, Amanda Glassman, director of global health policy and a senior fellow at the Center for Global Development (CGD), and health economist Ursula Giedion write in the CGD's "Global Health Policy" blog.

22 Feb 2013

Looming cuts fuel debate over Medicare and Medicaid spending

As the March 1 deadline for the sequester approaches, news outlets analyze the impact budget cuts might have on the U.S. economy in general and on Medicare specifically.

22 Feb 2013

Humanosphere blog examines Kerry's commitment to foreign aid

"John Kerry has only held the office of U.S. Secretary of State for a few weeks but has already made it known that foreign aid is one of his priorities," development blogger Tom Murphy writes in Humanosphere, adding, "Kerry says he will fight to maintain the budget of USAID and make the argument for its benefits."

22 Feb 2013

With financial commitment, Obama can add 'end of AIDS' to his legacy

"In his State of the Union address, President Obama stated with confidence that the promise of an AIDS-free generation is within our reach," Archbishop Emeritus of Capetown Desmond Tutu writes in a USA Today opinion piece, adding, "We currently possess the power to begin to end a global pandemic that has killed 25 million and infected another 34 million."

22 Feb 2013

Study finds bariatric surgery does not reduce long-term medical costs

Research disputes widely-held beliefs that the weight-loss operations cut the need for treatments and medicine after patients shed pounds.

22 Feb 2013

North Dakota, Kansas join list of states considering further abortion restrictions

An abortion clinic fights to stay open amid new proposed restrictions in North Dakota while Kansas lawmakers spar over new proposed restrictions on using state money for the procedure in that state.

22 Feb 2013

Amid budget woes, states consider changes to care for developmentally disabled

Fiscal concerns have lawmakers in New York and Kansas considering changes in how they fund care for the developmentally disabled.

22 Feb 2013

U.S., rest of world can learn from Rwanda's success in developing its health system

"Amidst the barrage of stories about failing states and civil wars that characterize the dour American media coverage of the developing world, the reinvention of Rwanda offers hope," Chicago-based writer Neal Emery states in an opinion piece in the Atlantic, adding, "Over the last 10 years, Rwanda's health system development has led to the most dramatic improvements of health in history."

22 Feb 2013

New leprosy test, experimental vaccine might hasten disease elimination, Slate reports

Slate examines a new rapid diagnostic test and an experimental vaccine for leprosy, both developed by the Infectious Disease Research Institute in Seattle, writing, "The two tools together could finally free humans from the vicious cycle of a disease that has afflicted the population for at least 4,000 years."

22 Feb 2013

Coalition of aid groups warn of sequestration's effects on humanitarian aid in open letter

"A coalition of aid groups including CARE, Catholic Relief Services, InterAction, the International Rescue Committee, Mercy Corps, Refugees International, World Vision, and many others delivered a letter to the White House and Congress Wednesday pointing out that 2013 has already been a year where the resources devoted to humanitarian assistance have been strained to the breaking point" and "warning that the impending arbitrary budget cuts known as the 'sequester' will have dire consequences for people in crisis situations in the world's most conflict-affected areas," Foreign Policy's "The Cable" reports.

22 Feb 2013

Major doctor group coalition expands list of tests, treatments that should be done only rarely

The American Board of Internal Medicine, as part of its "Choosing Wisely" campaign, expanded the number of medical societies recommending caution before certain tests and procedures are ordered.

22 Feb 2013

Roundup: HHS OKs key part of Fla.'s Medicaid managed care plan; Calif. lawmakers set to take up rules on its health insurance marketplace

The state of Florida won a second victory from HHS that will help the state introduce a statewide Medicaid managed-care program. The agency notified the state that it would grant its request for a medical assistance waiver -- a decision that comes just weeks after the department granted Florida's first request for a waiver for its long-term-care program.

22 Feb 2013

Oral polio vaccine cold chain disruption in Pakistan could compromise immunization effectiveness, health officials warn

Health officials in Pakistan have formally complained to the WHO concerning the quality of oral polio vaccine (OPV) doses distributed by the U.N. body," SciDev.Net reports, noting 58 children became infected with polio in 2012 despite having received the vaccine.

22 Feb 2013

Unequivocal evidence that omega-3 fatty acids reduce breast cancer risk

A lifelong diet rich in omega-3 fatty acids can inhibit growth of breast cancer tumours by 30 per cent, according to new research from the University of Guelph.

22 Feb 2013