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Medicaid news: Cost-savings for programs in Colo., N.C.; Fight over expansion brews in Ark.

State Medicaid budget issues show promise in Colorado -- where a cost savings program may be working -- and North Carolina -- where the program has spent less than anticipated.

13 Sep 2012

Public health symposium targets smokers most in need

Australia has one of the lowest smoking rates in the world at 15 per cent of the population but there remains a need to further cut rates in prisons, among the mentally ill and ethnic communities, researchers will argue at a public health symposium in Sydney.

13 Sep 2012

House subcommittee votes to separate insurance agents' payments from health law's MLR rules

On a largely party-line vote, the subcommittee voted to modify the provision of the 2010 health law. A vote by the full Energy and Commerce Committee is expected next week.

13 Sep 2012

Viewpoints: Questions Obama, Romney not likely to answer in debates; Disturbing news on tests for ovarian cancer

New evidence that women are more likely to be harmed than helped by screening tests for ovarian cancer is disturbing. The tests do nothing to prevent healthy women from dying from the usually fatal disease. Yet they often lead doctors to perform needless surgeries that cause serious complications in many patients.

13 Sep 2012

Ibuprofen or acetaminophen may increase risk of hearing loss among women

Headache? Back pain? At the first sign of pain, you might reach for a pain-relieving medicine to sooth your bodily woes. Analgesics are the most frequently used medications in the United States and are commonly used to treat a variety of medical conditions. But although popping a pill may make the pain go away, it may do some damage to your ears.

13 Sep 2012

Pending cases against India's patent laws threaten public health, misinterpret international IP agreements, report says

"Pending cases against India's patent laws threaten public health and misinterpret international intellectual property (IP) agreements," researchers from Queen Mary, University of London argue in a special report published online in the Lancet on Monday, PharmaTimes reports.

13 Sep 2012

Roughly two in five women in the U.S. do not use any form of birth control: Survey

Roughly two in five women in the United States do not use any form of birth control and many underestimate their risk for pregnancy, according to a recent survey about contraceptive practices in the United States.

13 Sep 2012

Zhejiang Hisun Pharmaceuticals, Pfizer launch new joint venture

Pfizer Inc., the world's largest research-based pharmaceutical company, and Zhejiang Hisun Pharmaceuticals, a leading Chinese pharmaceutical company, today announced the launch of Hisun-Pfizer Pharmaceuticals Co., Ltd., a joint venture formed between the two companies to develop, manufacture and commercialize off-patent pharmaceutical products in China and global markets.

13 Sep 2012

Roundup: Mich. Gov. proposes making BCBS a tax-paying insurer; Merger creates one of largest hospitals in Conn.; W. Va. chiropractor board scrutinized

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan would no longer be exempt from about $100 million a year in state and local taxes but would be subject to more streamlined and speedier rate reviews and approvals under legislation proposed today by Gov. Rick Snyder. The nonprofit health insurer would also pay $1.5 billion over 18 years into a separate nonprofit aimed at tackling issues such as obesity and infant mortality to improve the health of all Michigan residents, Snyder said at a news conference.

13 Sep 2012

First Edition: September 12, 2012

Today's headlines include news about former President Bill Clinton's role on the presidential campaign trail as well as reports from Capitol Hill and details of a new survey regarding health insurance costs.

12 Sep 2012

IRIN reports on flooding in Africa

In three separate articles, IRIN reports on the implications of flooding taking place in Africa. "Tens of thousands of people have been affected by flooding in parts of central, eastern and southern Chad following heavy rains in August," the news service writes in the first article, adding that the floods have affected 445,725 people and destroyed 255,720 hectares of cropland.

12 Sep 2012

Global health policy remains important in election year

In a post on IntraHealth's "Global Health Blog," Rebecca Kohler, senior vice president of corporate strategy and development at IntraHealth, writes about an event held last week on the sidelines of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) that "focused on the vital role of women's health in foreign policy."

12 Sep 2012

NCDs must be included in new global development goals

In this post in the Guardian's "Poverty Matters" blog, Johanna Ralston, chief executive of the World Heart Federation, and Ann Keeling, chief executive of the International Diabetes Federation, argue non-communicable diseases (NCDs) must be part of any new global development goals, writing, "NCDs and their risk factors worsen poverty, while poverty contributes to rising rates of NCDs, posing a threat to sustainable development."

12 Sep 2012

Researchers analyze cost-savings achieved by Medicare Physician Group Practice Demonstration

In an analysis of the cost-savings achieved by an earlier pilot program, the Medicare Physician Group Practice Demonstration (PGPD), researchers found modest estimates of overall savings associated with the PGPD, but larger savings among the dually eligible patients (Medicare and Medicaid), with savings achieved in large part through reductions in hospitalizations, according to a study in the September 12 issue of JAMA.

12 Sep 2012

TPP trade agreement could threaten access to medicines

"Right now, in Leesburg, Va., the office of the U.S. Trade Representative is negotiating a so-called 'trade agreement' -- the 'Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement' -- that could put the lives of millions of innocent civilians at risk" by potentially limiting access to life-saving medications, including antiretroviral drugs, Robert Naiman, policy director at Just Foreign Policy, writes in the Huffington Post Blog.

12 Sep 2012

Annual economic cost of chronic pain is as high as $635 billion: Study

Health economists from Johns Hopkins University writing in The Journal of Pain (www.jpain.org) reported the annual cost of chronic pain is as high as $635 billion a year, which is more than the yearly costs for cancer, heart disease and diabetes.

12 Sep 2012

VOA news examines AIDS among marginalized groups in Burma

VOA News examines AIDS among high-risk groups in Burma, also known as Myanmar. "Burma's AIDS epidemic mostly affects marginalized groups, such as the gay community," the news service writes, adding, "About one percent of Burma's population is HIV-positive," but "among high-risk groups, such as men who have sex with men, health workers estimate as many as 11 percent have HIV."

12 Sep 2012

Romney's shifting stance on health law makes policy, political waves

The GOP presidential nominee's comments Sunday that he would keep parts of the health law triggered questions about how he would cover those with pre-existing conditions, and reinforced doubts within his own party about his commitment to repealing the overhaul. Campaign aides attempted to clarify the comments.

12 Sep 2012

Research examines universal health care coverage in developing countries

"An increasing number of developing countries are introducing universal health care coverage -- and creating new models to do it -- according to research ... by the Results for Development Institute and others, published in the Lancet as part of its universal health care coverage series," IRIN reports.

12 Sep 2012

Leading U.S. nun calls on Republican governors to accept Medicaid expansion

A leading U.S. nun is joining other religious leaders in using a moral argument to try to convince Republican governors that they should implement the health law's Medicaid expansion for the poor.

12 Sep 2012