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First Edition: March 25, 2011

In his latest Kaiser Health News column, John Goodman writes: "As governors across the land struggle with fiscal pressures and pepper the federal government with requests to scale back Medicaid - many people are losing sight of the fact that health care reform requires a huge expansion of Medicaid".

25 Mar 2011

Antibiotic treatment does not benefit patients with discoloured phlegm

Prescribing antibiotics for patients with discoloured phlegm caused by acute cough has little or no effect on alleviating symptoms and recovery, a Cardiff University study has found.

25 Mar 2011

Health law waivers the target of new lawsuit

Crossroads Global Policy Strategies, a political organization founded by former George W. Bush adviser Karl Rove, has filed suit in an effort to force the Obama administration to reveal its reasons for granting these waivers.

25 Mar 2011

State-level action, reactions coincide with health law anniversary

Party politics appear to be a key determinant in how states and state-level officials are reacting to the measure's implementation.

25 Mar 2011

Financial Times, other media outlets highlight key issues in Global TB fight

In recognition of World Tuberculosis Day on Thursday, the Financial Times published a series of stories on TB worldwide.

25 Mar 2011

$ECCEO11-IOF: Total fragility fracture cost in six European countries estimated to be 31 billion Euro$

ECCEO11-IOF: Total fragility fracture cost in six European countries estimated to be 31 billion Euro

Research presented today at the European Congress on Osteoporosis & Osteoarthritis by investigators from the UK and Sweden estimates that the economic burden of fragility fractures in five major European countries totals 31 billion Euro, with Germany bearing the highest costs.

25 Mar 2011

P&G, Teva sign partnership agreement for consumer health care

The Procter & Gamble Company and Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. today announced the signing of a master agreement to create a partnership in consumer health care by bringing together both companies' existing over-the-counter medicines and complementary capabilities to accelerate growth.

25 Mar 2011

As states consider abortion measures, South Dakota law becomes flashpoint

The ramifications of this South Dakota law may be more political than practical, reports Politico, while people on both sides of the issue spring into action.

25 Mar 2011

Looking forward: Detailing the health law's next policy steps

In addition to timelines, explainers and answers, media outlets have detailed various developments, ranging from New York Democratic Rep. Anthony Weiner's interest in seeking a health law waiver for New York City to GOP-backed transparency proposals.

25 Mar 2011

Contention continues a year later

News outlets remark on the continuing ferocity of the health overhaul debate — even a year later — as its advocates and detractors continue efforts to advance or block the measure's implementation.

25 Mar 2011

Inadequate nutrition linked to greater risk of anemia in postmenopausal women

A new study published in the April 2011 issue of the Journal of the American Dietetic Association indicates that inadequate nutrition is linked to a greater risk of anemia in postmenopausal women.

25 Mar 2011

Different takes on the doctor shortage

Fox News reports that the health law may exacerbate this this access-to-care issue, but CNN reports that that family medicine residencies have seen a record increase in enrollment.

25 Mar 2011

Study: Veteran care for severly wounded hindered by poor communication

USA Today: Miscommunication Hinders Vets' Care, Study Finds.

25 Mar 2011

Medical experts: Nation needs to offer more confidential care for sexually active teens

After reviewing existing research regarding the common practices of health care providers who see adolescent patients across the country, Rebecca Allen, MD, MPH, a clinician and researcher at Women & Infants Hospital of Rhode Island, and her colleague, Michelle Forcier, MD, MPH, an adolescent medicine specialist at Hasbro Children's Hospital, asserted that the nation needs to offer more confidential care for teenagers who are sexually active.

25 Mar 2011

CDC: Almost 50 million Americans uninsured

CNN: Nearly 50 Million Americans Uninsured, CDC Says.

25 Mar 2011

Researchers find high rates of multi-drug resistant pathogen among LA population

Researchers with the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health have found high rates of the multi-drug resistant pathogen, carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae among the patient population in long-term acute care hospitals compared to general acute care hospitals across the county.

25 Mar 2011

State roundup: Vt. closer to single payer plan

After a full day and evening of debate, the Vermont House gave preliminary approval to health care reform legislation that's designed to put the state on the path toward a single payer system. ... The heart of the bill is the creation of a five person Health Care Board, modeled after the Public Service Board, which will oversee virtually every aspect of health care in the state.

25 Mar 2011

Study: Surgeon enthusiasm linked to high spinal procedure rates

Surgeons in some areas are more likely to recommend surgery for low back problems—and those differences in "surgeon enthusiasm" are a major factor driving regional variations in spinal surgery rates, suggests a study in the March 14 issue of Spine. The journal is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health.

25 Mar 2011

AACP selects Maryland professor for Pharmacy Educator Award

The American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy has selected innovative educator and mentor Robert Beardsley, RPh, PhD, MS, to receive the group's prestigious 2011 Robert K. Chalmers Distinguished Pharmacy Educator Award.

25 Mar 2011

Opinions: Using taxes to reduce poverty; fighting TB; meeting global food demands

To improve living standards and create jobs," African governments "need to provide their citizens with better health care, better education, more infrastructure. How to pay for this - in a way that is both fair and efficient - is a question that all governments face," Mark Plant, deputy director of the IMF's African Department, writes in a BusinessDay opinion piece where he describes how increased tax revenues in several African countries have led to "in-roads into poverty reduction."

25 Mar 2011