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Lawmakers, advocates consider allowing dental therapists, hygienists to give more types of care

Bettering the health of America's poorest through greater access to dental care is on the minds of state lawmakers and dental care advocates in Kansas and Massachusetts as they consider legislation to expand who can practice basic dentistry.

9 Mar 2012

U.S. envoy for N. Korea says administrative concerns over food aid resolved, would not provide details, AP reports

Robert King, the U.S. special envoy for North Korean human rights issues, on Thursday said talks with North Korean officials over food aid had "resolved the administrative issues we were concerned with," although "he declined to disclose details before reporting back to Washington," the Associated Press reports.

9 Mar 2012

State legislatures take on ultrasound mandate costs, employee health plans, Medicaid reform, malpractice

Democrats in the state Senate have sent Republican Gov. Bob McDonnell a list of conditions they want addressed before allowing a new state budget necessary to fund state services and operations to pass. … They want the state to pay for the ultrasound exams now mandated for women seeking abortions under a bill McDonnell signed Wednesday. ... And they want Medicaid eligibility restored for about 4,500 nursing home residents.

9 Mar 2012

Odds of adult mortality lower in PEPFAR focus countries compared with non-focus countries, study shows

"In an attempt to assess the impact of U.S. international assistance for AIDS, researchers from Stanford University carried out a review of the relationship between U.S. support provided through the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) and adult mortality in PEPFAR focus countries in sub-Saharan Africa, and whether there were differences in outcome between these countries and other African countries which did not receive PEPFAR support," NAM's Aidsmap reports.

9 Mar 2012

Viewpoints: Wilensky on bipartisan Medicare reform; Mass. 2006 health law and 2012 GOP politics; Reinstating advanced care planning

The Super Tuesday exit polls yielded a mountain of data in 10 states, but the most telling single statistic may have been in Massachusetts, which Mitt Romney won in a largely uncontested rout. Yet believe it or not, he still lost on health care. The exit poll asked voters their opinion of the "Massachusetts Health Care Law," with the options of Did Not Go Far Enough, About Right and Went Too Far. Remarkably, 51% said the bill went too far, while only 37% said it was about right, and 6% said not far enough.

9 Mar 2012

NCCN issues new guidelines for AYA oncology patients

The National Comprehensive Cancer Network announces that it has issued new NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology for Adolescent and Young Adult (AYA) Oncology. AYA patients are defined in the guidelines as individuals 15 to 39 years of age at initial cancer diagnosis.

9 Mar 2012

FDA clears Abbott's FreeStyle InsuLinx Blood Glucose Monitoring System

Abbott today announced that it has received U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) clearance for the FreeStyle InsuLinx Blood Glucose Monitoring System, the first from Abbott to include a touch-screen interface, automated logbook and several personalization features designed to improve the diabetes management experience for patients.

8 Mar 2012

Political cartoon: 'Cheapskate?'

Kaiser Health News provides a fresh take on health policy developments with "Cheapskate?" by Harley Schwadron.

8 Mar 2012

Bioethicist calls on Congress to protect physicians in war zones

Greater leadership is needed from the U.S. government to protect physicians and health facilities from increased attacks in armed conflict zones like Syria, experts told members of Congress in a special briefing today.

8 Mar 2012

AARP study details price increases of popular drugs

The prices of drugs used most widely by older Americans rose by nearly 26 percent from 2005 to 2009 - nearly twice the rate of inflation - according to a report issued Tuesday by AARP.

8 Mar 2012

Africare hosts panel discussion on issues of health care, women and economic development

In honor of International Women's Day, Africare in partnership with Global Health & Diplomacy (GHD) and the United Nations Foundation (UNF), hosted a panel discussion and press conference focused on issues of health care, women and economic development in Africa and the developing world.

8 Mar 2012

Ugandan government draws up response plan to combat 'nodding disease'

The Ugandan government is creating a "wide-ranging response plan" to "nodding disease, a mysterious ailment characterized by seizures, nodding of the head, mental retardation and stunting, which affects thousands of children in northern Uganda," IRIN reports.

8 Mar 2012

States use retiree health care, Medicaid cuts to stare down budget gaps

State budget cuts are targeting health care and retiree health care programs in states around the U.S. In Maryland, a "doomsday" budget scenario could reduce Medicaid spending by $101 million while advocates push for reinstatement of Medicaid dollars in Idaho and Arizona.

8 Mar 2012

Progress made in talks with North Korea regarding food aid, U.S. envoys say

"U.S. envoys said there was progress in talks Wednesday on arrangements for the first U.S. government food aid shipment to impoverished North Korea in three years, part of an agreement aimed at ending Pyongyang's nuclear programs," the Associated Press reports.

8 Mar 2012

Public reporting improves diabetes care in Wisconsin clinics

In one of the first studies of the impact of publicly reporting quality measures on outpatient care, a research team has found that clinics made improvements in diabetes care when they began publicly reporting how they were treating patients with the chronic disease.

8 Mar 2012

Preliminary results of Partners PrEP Study show promise, investigators report at CROI

"Investigators gave more details about the positive results of the Partners PrEP Study Tuesday at the 19th Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections in Seattle," the Center for Global Health Policy's "Science Speaks" blog reports.

8 Mar 2012

International Women's Day provides opportunity to renew commitment to world's girls

In this Huffington Post "Global Motherhood" opinion piece, Kate Roberts, vice president of corporate marketing, communications and advocacy at Population Services International, marks International Women's Day, to be recognized on March 8, and its 2012 theme, "Connecting Girls, Inspiring Futures."

8 Mar 2012

Study highlights challenges of adherence in successful deployment of PrEP interventions

"Data presented from the FEM-PrEP trial by Dr. Lut Van Damme Tuesday at the 19th Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections in Seattle highlighted the challenge that adherence plays in successfully deploying effective Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) interventions," HIV Medicine Association Executive Director Andrea Weddle writes in this guest post in the Center for Global Health Policy's "Science Speaks" blog.

8 Mar 2012

Berry fruits help the brain stay healthy in several ways

Strong scientific evidence exists that eating blueberries, blackberries, strawberries and other berry fruits has beneficial effects on the brain and may help prevent age-related memory loss and other changes, scientists report.

8 Mar 2012

Study suggests onchocerciasis can be eliminated with sustained distribution of treatment

"New research supported by Sightsavers and the African Programme for Onchocerciasis Control (APOC) shows that yes, onchocerciasis really can be eliminated when treatment is distributed in an area for a sustained period" and "found that the disease may already be eliminated in one Nigerian state, marking a significant milestone for onchocerciasis control programs," the Global Network for Neglected Diseases' "End the Neglect" blog writes.

8 Mar 2012

Health Care News and Research

Lawmakers, advocates consider allowing dental therapists, hygienists to give more types of care

U.S. envoy for N. Korea says administrative concerns over food aid resolved, would not provide details, AP reports

State legislatures take on ultrasound mandate costs, employee health plans, Medicaid reform, malpractice

Odds of adult mortality lower in PEPFAR focus countries compared with non-focus countries, study shows

Viewpoints: Wilensky on bipartisan Medicare reform; Mass. 2006 health law and 2012 GOP politics; Reinstating advanced care planning

NCCN issues new guidelines for AYA oncology patients

FDA clears Abbott's FreeStyle InsuLinx Blood Glucose Monitoring System

Political cartoon: 'Cheapskate?'

Bioethicist calls on Congress to protect physicians in war zones

AARP study details price increases of popular drugs

Africare hosts panel discussion on issues of health care, women and economic development

Ugandan government draws up response plan to combat 'nodding disease'

States use retiree health care, Medicaid cuts to stare down budget gaps

Progress made in talks with North Korea regarding food aid, U.S. envoys say

Public reporting improves diabetes care in Wisconsin clinics

Preliminary results of Partners PrEP Study show promise, investigators report at CROI

International Women's Day provides opportunity to renew commitment to world's girls

Study highlights challenges of adherence in successful deployment of PrEP interventions

Berry fruits help the brain stay healthy in several ways

Study suggests onchocerciasis can be eliminated with sustained distribution of treatment

Event guide: 3rd Measuring Patient Engagement Summit eBook

Evaluating new approaches for rare disease genomics

Expanding access to NMR with the Fourier 80 Duo

Advancing Intracellular Delivery with LumiPore®

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