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Afghan Acting Health Minister says country wants to boost immunization access

Reuters featured an interview with Afghanistan's Acting Health Minister Suraya Dalil on the sidelines of the World Health Assembly in Geneva. "Afghanistan, whose government is fighting a worsening insurgency that has dragged on for nearly a decade since the U.S.-backed overthrow of the Taliban, is also plagued by poverty, malnutrition and corruption," Reuters writes, adding that the government and donors together spend "barely" $10 per person on health annually.

19 May 2011

Government study finds 12 women died giving birth per month in 2010 at hospital in Sierra Leone

A study has shown that during 2010, 12 women died every month while giving birth at the Princess Christian maternity hospital in Freetown, Sierra Leone, "a country with one of the world's highest maternal mortality rates," Agence France-Presse reports.

19 May 2011

Decline in donations, weak U.S. dollar causing WHO to cut budget, staff, Director-General Chan says

A decline in contributions from the WHO's leading 30 "traditional" donor nations and the exchange rate for the weaker U.S. dollar are causing the agency to cut its budget and staff, WHO Director-General Margaret Chan told reporters in a news conference at the World Health Assembly in Geneva on Tuesday, the Associated Press reports.

19 May 2011

On Op-Ed pages, controversies abound: Romney, Gingrich, abortion, telemedicine, cancer funding cuts

Gingrich was taking basically the same position on Medicare he took 16 years ago, when, as speaker of the House, he was the commanding general of the Republican Revolution. ... Compared to today's Republican agenda, the Revolution of '94 now appears to be a halcyon period of moderation and good sense. Then, there was a hope that government-run Medicare would "wither on the vine" when recipients were offered alternatives.

19 May 2011

Maine law could be at odds with federal overhaul

A new law, which Maine's governor signed Tuesday, allows interstate insurance sales and insurers to set rates based on age, location and occupation.

19 May 2011

VOA News, MSNBC look at food security

VOA News looks at the relationship between food security and trade barriers. "The Global Harvest Initiative says improving food and agricultural trade flows in the coming decades will help counter the effects of changing weather patterns, population shifts and limited natural resources," VOA News writes.

19 May 2011

JAMA: Number of ERs decline just as emergency visits rise

A study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association reports that the number of emergency departments has been declining for the past two decades.

19 May 2011

Yoga offers unique benefits beyond fighting fatigue for women with breast cancer

For women with breast cancer undergoing radiation therapy, yoga offers unique benefits beyond fighting fatigue, according to new research from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.

19 May 2011

Global health partnership announces first-, second-line AIDS drugs price reductions in developing world

The Clinton Health Access Initiative, UNITAID, and the U.K.'s Department for International Development "said on Tuesday they had secured price reductions on key AIDS drugs for HIV-positive patients in poorer countries," Reuters reports.

19 May 2011

Inspector General: Push for EMRs overlooks security issues

The Office of the Inspector General found "a lack of general [information technology] security controls during prior audits at Medicare contractors, State Medicaid agencies, and hospitals."

19 May 2011

State roundup: Med schools in Texas face budget crunch

Patients would have access to detailed histories of Illinois doctors — including whether the physician has been fired, convicted of a crime or made a medical malpractice payment in the past five years — under legislation headed to the governor's desk.

19 May 2011

Early childhood food allergies increase risk of severe allergy-related conditions and asthma later in life

Early results from the largest cross-sectional national allergy study ever conducted, to be released later this month, demonstrate that food allergies commonly occur in infants and toddlers, while environmental allergies, such as to dust, ragweed and mold, are more common in older children and adults.

From Quest Diagnostics 18 May 2011

Face masks worn by TB patients could cut transmission rates to non-infected patients

Face masks worn by patients infected with tuberculosis (TB) may be able to significantly cut transmission rates to non-infected patients, according to a new study by researchers from the U.S. and South Africa. The study was conducted in a specialized airborne infections research facility in South Africa, which was designed to allow study of methods to control the spread of TB.

18 May 2011

First Edition: May 18, 2011

Today's news highlights include reports about the latest developments regarding the budget talks and the Senate's "Gang of Six," the continuing political hijinx surrounding Medicare issues, and the Obama administration's plan to offer a new path for accountable care organizations.

18 May 2011

Gingrich focuses attention on aging research

The presidential hopeful urged more investment in Alzheimer's research as a step that would lead to savings down the road. Meanwhile, The AP reports how the tight budget could pit scientific priorities against each other in a funding competition.

18 May 2011

GOP intra-party divisions emerge over Medicare revamps

Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., offered a forceful defense of his budget plan that includes a proposal to make major changes in the Medicare program after Newt Gingrich, the newly minted candidate for the Republican presidential nomination, ripped the plan.

18 May 2011

State efforts to protect patients fall short, group says

News reports examine the role of physician boards in protecting patients as well as how a self-referral rule is faring in the courts.

18 May 2011

Haiti presents plan to immunize 90 percent of newborns

Haiti has a plan to vaccinate 90 percent of newborns by 2015, according to PAHO, but "whether the plan works will depend on Haiti's ability to reverse decades of incompetent government and bad coordination among aid groups," as well as whether there will be funding, the New York Times reports.

18 May 2011

GAO report looks at U.S. aid for food emergencies, iWatch reports

According to a GAO report issued last week, "the USAID program designed for food emergencies now spends more than half of its funding to cover multi-year shortages that have become the norm. About 96 percent of the food aid supplied in 2010 went to 21 countries that have received U.S. food aid for four years or more," iWatch News reports.

18 May 2011

State Senators in Minnesota and Iowa pass abortion measures

A pair of bills that would dramatically limit abortion rights passed their final legislative hurdle on Monday and will soon be headed to the governor's desk. The GOP-led Minnesota Senate voted 40-26 to eliminate state funding of abortions for poor women and voted 42-24 to prohibit all abortions 20 weeks after conception.

18 May 2011