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Horn of Africa food crisis could last into summer 2012, E.U. Aid Commissioner says

"The crisis in the Horn of Africa, which has left more than 13 million people at risk of starvation, will continue into the spring, and possibly the summer," European Humanitarian Aid Commissioner Kristalina Georgieva said Tuesday, Reuters reports.

8 Dec 2011

Myanmar appeals for assistance in HIV/AIDS fight, develops 5-year national HIV/AIDS

"Myanmar appealed on Tuesday to the international community to increase assistance in combating HIV/ AIDS, as AIDS response in the country has entered a critical stage," Xinhua reports, adding, "The appeal was made by participants attending" a round-table discussion on reaching zero AIDS-related stigma and discrimination in the country.

8 Dec 2011

High-level meetings raise questions of global health commitments by African nations

In this post in Management Sciences for Health's (MSH) "Global Health Impact" blog, Crystal Lander, director of policy and advocacy at MSH, recaps speeches made by global leaders at last week's International Conference on Family Planning in Dakar, Senegal, and the International Conference on HIV and STIs in Africa (ICASA) in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, this week, having attended both events.

8 Dec 2011

Health technology's 'enthusiasm gap'

The Washington Post reports that many of the predictions for health technology's future depend on how willing health care providers are to embrace new technology. Meanwhile, Kaiser Health News reports specifically on the important and evolving role of home care technology and iWatch News offers a status report of how the states are doing.

8 Dec 2011

MENA region among top two regions with fastest growing HIV epidemic, report shows

"A report on the HIV epidemic in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) shows that while the overall HIV prevalence in the region is still low, the rise in new infections since 2001 has put the MENA region among the top two regions in the world with the fastest growing HIV epidemic," UNAIDS reports.

8 Dec 2011

PrEP shows promise against HIV infection

A new weapon has emerged to prevent HIV infection. Called pre-exposure prophylaxis, or PrEP, it is a strategy of providing medications to at-risk people before they are exposed to the virus. Having shown great promise in recent phase 3 clinical trials, PrEP may soon be rolled out for public use.

8 Dec 2011

Fatal snakebites 'vastly underreported,' researchers report at annual ASTMH meeting

"Fatal snakebites worldwide have been vastly underreported because many die before seeking or reaching medical care, researchers" from the Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre in Frankfurt, Germany, reported on Monday at the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene's (ASTMH) annual meeting, UPI.com writes.

8 Dec 2011

Consumer advocates, other watchdog groups urge congress to leave broker regs alone

The organizations want Congress to maintain the medical loss ratio rule's current classification of broker fees as administrative expenses. Also in the news, during a Tuesday hearing, House Republicans attacked the work of an economist Democrats have quoted in an argument related to the health law's tax credits.

8 Dec 2011

Obama administration to promote and protect LGBT rights through foreign aid, diplomacy

"The Obama administration said Tuesday that it will intensify efforts to fight discrimination against lesbians, gay men, bisexuals and transgender people as a major element of its foreign policy," the Washington Post reports.

8 Dec 2011

HHS: Plan B access will stay limited

The Department of Health and Human Services announced today that the morning-after pill, known as Plan B, will continue to be kept behind the pharmacy counter and girls younger than 17 will continue to need a prescription to obtain it.

8 Dec 2011

State roundup: Aetna suing over Mich. BCBS hospital deals; ACLU threatens Ohio abortion suit

The latest challenge was a lawsuit filed Tuesday in Detroit's federal court by insurance giant Aetna, one of the nation's largest health plans, with 35 million members. The suit alleges a violation of federal antitrust laws, claiming the Blues raised rates for Michigan consumers over the last four years and used the money to reward hospitals with higher payments if they charged Blues' competitors the same or higher rates.

8 Dec 2011

Reid threatens session through Christmas to finish business, including payroll tax cut and doc fix

Many insiders expect a final package will emerge that wraps the payroll tax cut extension into a broader bill that also includes other measures, like the Medicare physician payment fix, with end-of-year expiration dates.

8 Dec 2011

Senators say burden on Express Scripts and Medco to show merger would benefit consumers, competition

Sen. Herb Kohl on Tuesday told Express Scripts and Medco executives that the burden was "squarely" on them to show that their proposed $29 billion merger would benefit consumers and competition, not just the corporate bottom line.

8 Dec 2011

FDA approves changes to REMS for Nplate and Promacta

The approval of changes to the Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategies (REMS) for both Nplate (romiplostim) and Promacta (eltrombopag) was announced by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

7 Dec 2011

Senate hearing focuses on merger of two big drug benefit managers

Express Scripts and Medco Health Solutions are seeking to combine operations, but some senators have raised concerns about the effect on consumers.

7 Dec 2011

Reuters examines role of family planning at Durban climate change talks

"[W]ith studies suggesting that 215 million women around the world want -- but cannot get -- effective contraception, making sure birth control methods are available to those who want them could be one of the cheapest, fastest and most effective ways of addressing climate change, experts said at the U.N. climate conference in Durban" this week, AlertNet reports.

7 Dec 2011

Needle-free anemia test to be launched in February, Guardian reports

The Guardian profiles Biosense Technologies, an Indian startup company, and its first product, "the world's first needle-free anemia scanner," called ToucHb, which will be launched in February.

7 Dec 2011

Merck, PATH form partnership to fight causes of maternal mortality

Pharmaceutical company Merck (MSD) announced Monday it has "awarded a grant to PATH, a global health nonprofit, to identify game-changing technologies with the potential to save the lives of women during pregnancy and childbirth in low-resource settings," according to a Merck press release.

7 Dec 2011

First Edition: December 7, 2011

In the news today, a status check on the work -- including the Medicare doc fix -- that Congress still needs to attend to before leaving Washington for the holidays.

7 Dec 2011

Gingrich's policy positions draw attention as his popularity in polls grows

The Boston Globe examines how Gingrich's view of the individual mandate has changed. Meanwhile, Reuters reports on GOP presidential hopeful Mitt Romney's efforts to keep his record as governor of Massachusetts under wraps. Finally, Rick Santorum gets into a health policy fracas in Iowa.

7 Dec 2011

Health Care News and Research

Horn of Africa food crisis could last into summer 2012, E.U. Aid Commissioner says

Myanmar appeals for assistance in HIV/AIDS fight, develops 5-year national HIV/AIDS

High-level meetings raise questions of global health commitments by African nations

Health technology's 'enthusiasm gap'

MENA region among top two regions with fastest growing HIV epidemic, report shows

PrEP shows promise against HIV infection

Fatal snakebites 'vastly underreported,' researchers report at annual ASTMH meeting

Consumer advocates, other watchdog groups urge congress to leave broker regs alone

Obama administration to promote and protect LGBT rights through foreign aid, diplomacy

HHS: Plan B access will stay limited

State roundup: Aetna suing over Mich. BCBS hospital deals; ACLU threatens Ohio abortion suit

Reid threatens session through Christmas to finish business, including payroll tax cut and doc fix

Senators say burden on Express Scripts and Medco to show merger would benefit consumers, competition

FDA approves changes to REMS for Nplate and Promacta

Senate hearing focuses on merger of two big drug benefit managers

Reuters examines role of family planning at Durban climate change talks

Needle-free anemia test to be launched in February, Guardian reports

Merck, PATH form partnership to fight causes of maternal mortality

First Edition: December 7, 2011

Gingrich's policy positions draw attention as his popularity in polls grows

Event guide: 3rd Measuring Patient Engagement Summit eBook

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