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AARP Maryland commends Representatives who voted for health care reform

The U.S. House of Representatives voted late Sunday to move forward with a package of health care reforms that will bring needed relief to millions of Americans struggling with the high cost of prescription drugs and discriminatory insurance company practices. By passing this legislative package, Members voted to protect and improve the guaranteed benefits that people in Medicare rely on and make progress toward ending the rampant discrimination used by insurers to deny coverage to those who need it most.

22 Mar 2010

Unrealized educational expectations do not always lead to frustration and anxiety

"Is There a Downside to Shooting for the Stars? Unrealized Educational Expectations and Symptoms of Depression," which was published in the American Sociological Review (http://asr.sagepub.com/cgi/content/full/75/1/151), is the first large, national study to look at the mental health consequences of failing to meet educational expectations.

20 Mar 2010

Latino Coalition opposes health care bill

Hispanic groups wrote a second letter to congressional leaders to raise their concerns about provisions in the current health care bill that negatively targets minority communities. They believe that the current legislation will have a disproportionately negative impact on low-income minority groups and will lead to Medicare cuts for Hispanic seniors, increase in taxes for Hispanic small businesses and reduced wages for Hispanic workers. Congress has failed to listen to their concerns.

20 Mar 2010

CCAGW calls upon Congress to vote against healthcare bill

The Council for Citizens Against Government Waste today called upon Congress to reject any attempts to alter the nation’s healthcare system using parliamentary gimmicks and urged members to vote against the bill.

20 Mar 2010

CBO numbers buoy Democrats eyeing Sunday health reform vote

Democrats unveiled a health overhaul reconciliation bill the Congressional Budget Office says will cost $940 billion but also cut the deficit by $138 billion over the next 10 years.

20 Mar 2010

AARP urges Congressmen to support health care bill and help deliver relief to Idahoans

Hundreds of thousands of Idahoans unable to afford health care or struggling to pay soaring health care costs are watching Congress and hoping for relief. With a final showdown looming on health insurance reform legislation in Washington, D.C., AARP announced this morning it will back the bill containing key reform provisions, improving health care for older Americans and their families.

20 Mar 2010

Role of structured physical activity in preventing or delaying mobility disabilities in older adults

Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center, together with Wake Forest University, will play a key role in a new study that seeks to determine whether a program of structured physical activity can prevent or delay major mobility disabilities in older adults.

19 Mar 2010

Enrollment in internal medicine residency program remains stagnant

The number of U.S. medical students choosing internal medicine residencies inched higher from 2009 but not enough to significantly impact the shortage of primary care physicians.

19 Mar 2010

Almost 62% of Canadians age 65 and older use five or more classes of prescription drugs: CIHI study

Almost two-thirds (62%) of Canadians age 65 and older living in the community in six provinces are using five or more classes of prescription drugs, according to a study released today by the Canadian Institute for Health Information.

19 Mar 2010

As reform hangs in balance, policy benefits continue to be discussed

NPR reports on the immediate effects of the proposed health care bill, and that Congressional Democrats are focusing on those benefits in messages to constituents. "The White House is trying to shift the conversation away from the messy legislative process — which Republicans are keying on — and instead focus on what the health care overhaul would do for families and businesses."

19 Mar 2010

ISCO commences second phase of testing RPE derived from parthenogenetic stem cells

International Stem Cell Corporation, announced today that ISCO's Research and Therapeutic Development Group, together with a group of scientists from the University of California, Irvine (UCI), is starting a second phase of essential pre-clinical experiments to test retinal pigment epithelium derived from parthenogenetic stem cells. Follow on pre-clinical experiments will be conducted to rescue vision in disease models.

18 Mar 2010

Competitive bidding program for durable medical equipment: Myths and realities

Medicare has been touting the merits of the "competitive" bidding program for durable, or home medical equipment and services (HME) to convince Congress that the program is good for seniors. Unfortunately, proponents have conveyed misleading information and cherry-picked facts that exaggerate the benefits and ignore the severe shortcomings of the program.

18 Mar 2010

Evaluating all Medicare plan options can reduce healthcare costs

Nearly 8 million former workers have disabilities so severe that they rely on Social Security Disability Insurance benefits, and an estimated 3.3 million more will apply for disability benefits this year. For these people and others suffering from serious conditions and disabilities, taking the right steps quickly to manage costs is essential for their financial and health well-being, according to Allsup, a nationwide provider of Social Security disability representation and Medicare plan selection services.

18 Mar 2010

New dental health awareness campaign targeting Massachusetts seniors

Universal Dental Plan newly launched its first ever dental health awareness campaign targeting Massachusetts seniors. Based on a large body of major medical research, the organization built its 2010 keynote outreach initiative around three main objectives -- to alert seniors on the high costs and acute health risks of delayed dentistry, educate them on easy and actionable ways to keep major dental problems at bay, and introduce them to a convenient solution that makes dentistry affordable for all.

18 Mar 2010

Senate parliamentarian wields authority over Democrats' health care efforts

The Associated Press: "When Congress battles over thorny bills, parliamentarian Alan Frumin has been known to sleep in his office — on call 24/7 as the Senate's Solomon, divining the answers. Frumin's ability to review long-standing rules and centuries of precedent to resolve Senate questions makes the mustachioed parliamentarian something of a Washington rock star these days.

18 Mar 2010

Report calls for Medicaid, Social Security changes for LGBT seniors

The Los Angeles Times: A report released Wednesday at a national meeting on aging asks lawmakers to consider changes to Medicaid and Social Security rules that could help gay and lesbian senior citizens.

18 Mar 2010

Drugmakers are 'under-exposed' in emerging markets, report says

Growing markets for pharmaceuticals in China, Brazil, Russia and India are outpacing national markets in Europe and the U.S., but major drugmakers have been slow to expand in these markets and may lose opportunities, a new study finds, The New York Times reports. To put the shift in perspective, China will overtake both France and Germany next year in terms of drug spending, while Brazil will overtake Britain, according to the report by research firm IMS Health.

18 Mar 2010

First Edition: March 17, 2010

Today's news continues to focus on Democratic leaders' efforts to finalize their health reform package and gather the votes necessary to gain House passage.

17 Mar 2010

Sonic Innovations' moisture-resistant hearing aids outlast competition

Sonic Innovations, the U.S.-based hearing aid manufacturer, recently conducted moisture-resistance tests using two of its products and eight from major competitors. The results? Sonic outlasted its nearest competitor by 44 percent.

17 Mar 2010

Obama makes a final overhaul pitch in Ohio

With a possible deciding vote on health care overhaul legislation nearing, President Obama traveled Monday to Ohio to make a last-minute plea for political "courage" to pass the legislation, The Washington Post reports. "Making an impassioned pitch in a part of the country where unemployment runs high and insurance coverage is uncertain, Obama said in a speech at a senior center here, 'I don't know about the politics, but I know what's the right thing to do'" (Slevin and Branigin, 3/15).

17 Mar 2010