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Under ACA 90% of Californians below age of 65 will be enrolled in health insurance programs

Nine out of 10 Californians under the age of 65 will be enrolled in health insurance programs as a result of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA), according to a joint study by the UC Berkeley Center for Labor Research and Education and the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research.

15 Jun 2012

OAS members must assist U.S. efforts to ensure food security in Americas

"Together with international partners, the United States has launched an unprecedented effort over the past three years to reverse a decades-long decline in agricultural investments," with a goal of "alleviating the chronic hunger that afflicts nearly one billion people around the world, including an estimated 53 million in Latin America and the Caribbean," a VOA editorial states.

14 Jun 2012

Sabin initiates novel human hookworm vaccine Phase 1 clinical trial

Today, the Sabin Vaccine Institute, in partnership with the George Washington University and the Children's National Medical Center, began vaccinating participants for a Phase 1 clinical trial of a novel human hookworm vaccine.

14 Jun 2012

If health continues to wane on G8 agenda, a serious void will be left

In this post in the Global Health Governance blog, Jenilee Guebert, director of research for the global health diplomacy program and G8 research group at the University of Toronto's Munk School of Global Affairs, writes that, "for the second year in a row, the amount of attention devoted to global health" at the annual G8 summit, which took place at Camp David in Maryland in May, has declined.

13 Jun 2012

African-led innovation 'imperative' to overcoming health issues on the continent

In this post in the Guardian's "Poverty Matters" blog, Carel IJsselmuiden, executive director of the Council on Health for Development Group, writes that "Africa must turn its health research into treatments for African people," noting, "Despite large investments being made by donors in health products and delivery of health services, a large percentage of Africans still have limited access to sufficient and quality healthcare -- especially in rural areas."

13 Jun 2012

DNDi, Astellas partner on new drug discovery research for treatment of NTDs

Astellas Pharma Inc. and the Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi) announced an agreement today to collaborate on drug discovery research for leishmaniasis, Chagas disease, and sleeping sickness - three neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) which together affect nearly 10 million people worldwide.

12 Jun 2012

Chagas disease – ‘the AIDS of the Americas’

A recent editorial published in the Public Library of Science's Neglected Tropical Diseases called Chagas disease, a parasite which kills about 20,000 people a year, "the AIDS of the Americas." The disease can be transferred to a child from its mother or by blood transfusions. About 20 percent of those infected can develop life-threatening illness that includes enlarged hearts or intestines, and the drugs used today to treat the disease can take months to work.

12 Jun 2012

Family planning summit next month 'could mark turning point for maternal health'

In this post in the Guardian's "Poverty Matters" blog, U.N. Population Fund (UNFPA) Executive Director Babatunde Osotimehin discusses a family planning summit to be held in London next month, writing the UNFPA "is supporting the initiative so that it can gain traction and support among other donors and UN member countries."

8 Jun 2012

Aid agencies should support journalists to increase their ability to make a difference in developing countries

In this post in the Guardian's "Poverty Matters" blog, Prue Clarke, an Africa correspondent, media development specialist and the co-founder and executive director of New Narratives -- Africans Reporting Africa, writes, "By not supporting journalists, aid agencies are severely limiting their access to the truth about what is happening in developing countries and, therefore, their ability to make a difference."

8 Jun 2012

Yawning gulf between maternal mortality policies and implementation

As the UN Special Rapporteur on maternal mortality in India points out there is a 'yawning gulf between commendable maternal mortality policies and their urgent, focused, sustained, systematic and effective implementation', the May issue of Reproductive Health Matters explores the causes and impact of this gap, but also highlights hopeful signs of progress.

2 Jun 2012

Opinion pieces, editorial discuss significant decline in child mortality in sub-Saharan Africa

The following summaries of two opinion pieces and an editorial explore a recent paper published by the World Bank discussing significant declines in infant and under-five mortality in Kenya and across sub-Saharan Africa.

1 Jun 2012

Aeras, IDRI partner to develop novel TB vaccine

In a guest post on the Global Health Technologies Coalition's "Breakthroughs" blog, Jamie Elizabeth Rosen, media and communications manager at Aeras, interviews Steven Reed, founder, president, and chief scientific officer of the Infectious Disease Research Institute (IDRI), "a 120-person non-profit biotech committed to applying innovative science to the research and development of products to prevent, detect, and treat infectious diseases of poverty."

31 May 2012

U.S. House poised for a series of health-related votes

Included on the list is a bill to repeal the health law's medical device tax and another to repeal the OTC ban. The device-tax issue has already emerged as a hot topic in many congressional races.

31 May 2012

IPS, AlertNet report on health issues resulting from climate change

Inter Press Service examines the relationship between climate change and family planning in least-developed countries (LDCs), writing the "double challenge of mitigating climate change and combating crushing poverty makes improving reproductive rights and promoting gender equality imperatives that can no longer be delayed, according to several recent reports and agreements."

31 May 2012

State roundup: Minn. defends Medicaid billing; Cigna, N.H. Group form joint venture; Health coupons in Mass.

Top Minnesota health officials pushed back Tuesday against a congressional committee probing allegations that the state overbilled federal taxpayers for Medicaid services to cover losses from in other state-run public health programs. In a letter to the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, Minnesota Human Services Commissioner Lucinda Jesson defended reforms implemented under DFL Gov. Mark Dayton, saying "our focus has been on changing course rather than investigating the past."

31 May 2012

Outcomes of next month's Rio+20 summit will have 'deep repercussions' for future generations

In this post in the Guardian's "Poverty Matters Blog," Gro Harlem Brundtland and Fernando Henrique Cardoso, both of whom are involved in Elders+Youngers, an inter-generational dialogue on the future of the planet initiated by the Elders, a group of eminent global leaders working together for peace and human rights, comment on a "lack of urgency in the run-up to the Rio+20 summit next month," writing, "The meeting provides a historic opportunity to chart a sustainable future for the world," but "at the moment, there is a real chance the opportunity will be thrown away."

30 May 2012

Participants of 5th International Parliamentarian Conference on Population, Development reiterate commitment to 1994 program of action

"Participants at the Fifth International Parliamentarians' Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) ended a two-day meeting in Istanbul, Turkey, on Friday with a joint pledge to advocate for increased funding for full implementation of the decades-old ICPD Programme of Action," Inter Press Service reports.

30 May 2012

Controlling TB in geographic hotspots could reduce citywide transmission

Reducing tuberculosis transmission in geographic "hotspots" where infections are highest could significantly reduce TB transmission on a broader scale, according to a study led by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. An analysis of data from Rio de Janeiro showed that a reduction in TB infections within three high-transmission hotspots could reduce citywide transmission by 9.8 percent over 5 years, and as much as 29 percent over 50 years. The study was published May 28 by the journal PNAS.

29 May 2012

Research group to present plan to improve nutrition security at Rio+20 summit

Ahead of the Rio+20 U.N. Conference on Sustainable Development, "CGIAR, the world's largest publicly funded research body, has published a seven-point 'call to action' plan," which "calls for an improved commitment to deliver nutrition security and lessen the need to aid," BBC News reports.

25 May 2012

State roundup: Labor unions continue Wis. Governor recall push; 'Affordability gap' in Minn.

Democrats and unions hoping to turn Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker out of office over his efforts to tame the power of organized labor are finding it tough going with only two weeks to go before a historic recall election. … Walker pushed through the legislature a law requiring public sector union members to pay part of the cost of health insurance and pensions, limited pay rises, made paying union dues voluntary and forced unions to be recertified every year.

24 May 2012

Poverty News and Research

Under ACA 90% of Californians below age of 65 will be enrolled in health insurance programs

OAS members must assist U.S. efforts to ensure food security in Americas

Sabin initiates novel human hookworm vaccine Phase 1 clinical trial

If health continues to wane on G8 agenda, a serious void will be left

African-led innovation 'imperative' to overcoming health issues on the continent

DNDi, Astellas partner on new drug discovery research for treatment of NTDs

Chagas disease – ‘the AIDS of the Americas’

Family planning summit next month 'could mark turning point for maternal health'

Aid agencies should support journalists to increase their ability to make a difference in developing countries

Yawning gulf between maternal mortality policies and implementation

Opinion pieces, editorial discuss significant decline in child mortality in sub-Saharan Africa

Aeras, IDRI partner to develop novel TB vaccine

U.S. House poised for a series of health-related votes

IPS, AlertNet report on health issues resulting from climate change

State roundup: Minn. defends Medicaid billing; Cigna, N.H. Group form joint venture; Health coupons in Mass.

Outcomes of next month's Rio+20 summit will have 'deep repercussions' for future generations

Participants of 5th International Parliamentarian Conference on Population, Development reiterate commitment to 1994 program of action

Controlling TB in geographic hotspots could reduce citywide transmission

Research group to present plan to improve nutrition security at Rio+20 summit

State roundup: Labor unions continue Wis. Governor recall push; 'Affordability gap' in Minn.

Bringing real-time analytics to downstream bioprocess monitoring

Designing fluidic architecture for scalable diagnostic platforms

Evaluating new approaches for rare disease genomics

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