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Global Fund investigation finds recipient organization in Bangladesh 'misappropriated' some $1.9M in grant funds

"The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria is eyeing the recovery of some $1.89 million 'misappropriated' grant funds following an investigative report on one of its sub-recipients in Bangladesh," the Devex "Development Newswire" blog reports.

13 Jul 2012

Republican-led House votes (again) to repeal health law

The repeal effort is a means for Republican leaders to rev up voters before November's elections. Five Democrats also voted with the majority. As with previous efforts, however, the measure is expected to languish in the Democrat-controlled Senate.

13 Jul 2012

Officials identify causes of 'mystery illness' responsible for more than 60 child deaths in Cambodia, CNN reports

According to physicians familiar with the investigation, the causes of the "mystery illness" that has killed more than 60 children in Cambodia have been identified, CNN reports. "A combination of pathogens ... is to blame for the illness, the World Health Organization, in conjunction with the Cambodian Ministry of Health, has concluded, the doctors said," according to the news service.

13 Jul 2012

Medicaid news: Federal officials question drop in Pa.'s rolls

In Pennsylvania, the federal government is checking into why 130,000 people were removed from the Medicaid program.

13 Jul 2012

Studies show success, highlight challenges of PrEP strategy

The results of three clinical trials published on Wednesday in the New England Journal of Medicine show that the antiretroviral drug Truvada, a combination of tenofovir and emtracitabine, can be "highly effective at preventing infection in HIV-free individuals -- as long as those individuals take the drug every day as prescribed," CNN's "The Chart" reports (7/11).

13 Jul 2012

International community commits to boosting family planning services at London Summit

"Voluntary family planning services will reach an additional 120 million women and girls in the world's poorest countries by 2020 thanks to a new set of commitments announced [at the London Summit on Family Planning on Wednesday] by more than 150 leaders from donor and developing countries, international agencies, civil society, foundations and the private sector," a Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation press release reports (7/11).

13 Jul 2012

Longer looks: Keeping Parkinson's a secret

When Nancy Mulhearn learned she had Parkinson's disease seven years ago, she kept the diagnosis mostly to herself, hiding it from friends, colleagues -- even, at first, her mother, sister and teenage children. After seven months, she decided she had to tell her family, and they settled into an unspoken agreement not to talk about the disease.

13 Jul 2012

Judge keeps injunction against Miss. abortion law in place

A federal judge continued to block a Mississippi law that could close the state's last abortion clinic, while he considers more evidence.

13 Jul 2012

Governors continue to mull, question Medicaid expansion

In the weeks since the Supreme Court ruling, several Republican governors opposed to the law have declared that they will opt out of its Medicaid expansion, which is set to take effect in 2014 and would cover those earning 133 percent or less of the federal poverty level.

13 Jul 2012

GlobalPost examines progress against AIDS in Zimbabwe

GlobalPost examines efforts to combat AIDS in Zimbabwe as part of its "AIDS Turning Point" series. The news service writes that "what makes the case of Zimbabwe so curious -- and even confounding to many outside observers -- is that this country found success even though it was largely cut out of the big spending by PEPFAR's list of 15 so-called 'focus countries.'"

13 Jul 2012

GAO questions legality of Medicare Advantage bonuses

In a 10-page letter sent Wednesday to HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, the Government Accountability Office's general counsel raised questions about the $8.3 billion demonstration program, which Republicans had criticized as a ruse to mask some of the health law's cuts in seniors' benefits.

13 Jul 2012

Blog posts address London Summit on Family Planning

On World Population Day, observed on Wednesday, July 11, the U.K. Government and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation co-hosted the London Summit on Family Planning. The following are summaries of blog posts addressing the summit.

13 Jul 2012

Many bipolar patients unaware of co-occurring medical conditions

Co-occurring medical conditions are common among patients with bipolar disorder, but many may not be aware that they have such conditions, say researchers.

12 Jul 2012

First Edition: July 12, 2012

Kaiser Health News staff writer Phil Galewitz, working in collaboration with The Philadelphia Inquirer, reports: Penn is one of a small, but growing number of hospitals taking their advertising campaigns to Facebook, Google and other websites. Fewer than 150 of the nation's 6,000 hospitals use Google and Facebook to market services, estimates Rob Grant, executive vice president of eVariant, a Simsbury, Ct.-based hospital consulting firm.

12 Jul 2012

Sahel region experiencing increase in cholera cases, UNICEF, WHO warn

UNICEF and the WHO "are warning of an alarming upsurge in cholera across West Africa's Sahel region, the area at the southern fringe of the Sahara Desert running from Mauritania to Chad," VOA News reports.

12 Jul 2012

PLoS Medicine papers examine HIV treatment as prevention

Early treatment with antiretroviral medication can significantly reduce the risk of HIV transmission to an uninfected sexual partner, "but many logistical hurdles stand in the way of making this strategy feasible, affordable and effective, according to experts writing in Tuesday's edition of the journal PLoS Medicine," the Los Angeles Times reports.

12 Jul 2012

Candidates take sides ahead of latest health law repeal vote

Candidates in Massachusetts and Colorado disagree over the course to take on the health law ahead of a repeal vote in the House Wednesday. In Maine, the Republican governor is clashing with a Democratic Congresswoman over Medicaid cuts there.

12 Jul 2012

NAM Publications to serve as official news partner of AIDS 2012

NAM Publications, through aidsmap.org, will be an official news partner of the 19th International AIDS Conference (AIDS 2012), according to a post in the aidsmap blog.

12 Jul 2012

AIDS 2012 conference comes at a 'moment of hope'

"A tremendous amount of attention will be focused on AIDS over the next six weeks -- and that's a great thing," as the International AIDS Conference (AIDS 2012) convenes in Washington, D.C., from July 22 to 27, U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator Ambassador Eric Goosby writes in an opinion piece in The Hill.

12 Jul 2012

Many anti-malaria drugs in Africa fake or substandard, reports show

"Many of Africa's anti-malaria drugs are fake or of poor quality, weakening a crucial battle against the world's deadliest disease, a new investigation has found," GlobalPost reports, adding, "Many of the drugs -- even those approved by the World Health Organization -- are Chinese fakes or low-quality variants that failed quality tests, according to two new studies released today."

12 Jul 2012