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AP reports on 'significant' clarification of Pope's comments on condoms to prevent HIV

The Associated Press/Washington Post reports that after questions arose about Pope Benedict XVI's comments on the use of condoms to prevent HIV, which one translation "implied that he was referring primarily to homosexual sex, when condoms aren't being used as a form of contraception," Vatican spokesman, the Rev. Federico Lombardi "told reporters Tuesday that he asked the pope whether he intended his comments to only apply to male prostitutes.

24 Nov 2010

Meningitis immunization program to launch in 3 African countries next month

At a press conference in London, health officials said that the anticipated roll-out of the MenAfriVac for meningitis in three African countries will start on Dec. 6, the BBC reports.

24 Nov 2010

Daily oral antiretroviral reduces HIV infection risk in MSM by 44%, study finds

A study that included nearly 2,500 HIV-negative men and transgender women who have sex with men has shown that a daily dose of Truvada, a pill containing the AIDS drugs emtricitabine and tenofovir, "can reduce risk of contracting [HIV] by an average of 44% - and by more than 70% if the subjects" follow the regimen closely, Los Angeles Times reports (Maugh, 11/23).

24 Nov 2010

Lifestyle-related diseases will be costly down the road; Americans rate their healthcare highly

Increased efforts to prevent several lifestyle-related diseases could save the United States billions of dollars a year in medical costs, according to a study scheduled to run in the American Journal of Public Health.

24 Nov 2010

Study estimates cost savings associated with global polio eradication; global post examines vaccination efforts in Africa

Research published in the November issue of the journal Vaccine found that a global campaign to eliminate polio could save between $40 billion and $50 billion over the next few decades if the crippling disease is wiped out within five years Bloomberg reports.

24 Nov 2010

Health spending proposals, health law repeal divide lawmakers

The Wall Street Journal reports that proposals for cuts in health spending by President Barack Obama's deficit-reduction commission are drawing opposition from health companies, doctors and some consumer groups. "How to tackle health costs has become a sticking point for the 18-member committee, which last week concluded three days of meetings without a firm agreement among members.

24 Nov 2010

Two surveys show 'huge variation' in health costs in U.S.

The Wall Street Journal: Two studies out Monday - one is a country-by-country survey by the International Federation of Health Plans, and the second from Change: healthcare - "attempt to bring some clarity to how costs stack up, both between different countries and among U.S. providers that might be just a few blocks apart."

24 Nov 2010

UNAIDS report finds new HIV infections dropped by 20% over 10 years, deaths from AIDS-related illness dropped by 20% over 5 years

The number of new HIV infections has dropped by about one-fifth over the past decade but millions of people are still missing out on major progress in prevention and treatment, according to the annual UNAIDS report released Tuesday, Agence France-Presse reports.

23 Nov 2010

Insuring your health: Retirees can find insuring young adult children difficult

In her latest Kaiser Health News consumer column, Michelle Andrews writes: "According to the Department of Health and Human Services, the key is whether the retiree health plan is made up only of retirees and their dependents or a mix of both active and retired employees and dependents.

23 Nov 2010

'Telehealth' devices allow patients to track illnesses from home

Thousands of seriously ill patients are relying on computerized health trackers to help keep them safe at home.

23 Nov 2010

Feds recover $3 billion in health care fraud and other settlements

CNN: "Government lawyers have recovered a near-record $3 billion this year from health care fraud and other settlements, the Justice Department announced Monday." Assistant Attorney General Tony West said the funds included "a record $2.5 billion in recoveries from huge health care fraud cases against giant pharmaceutical firms. Only in 2006, when the federal government recovered $3.2 billion in total settlements, had recoveries previously hit the $3 billion mark" (Frieden, 11/22).

23 Nov 2010

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan faces new lawsuits, GOP in Florida looks to malpractice reform to help draw doctors to Medicaid program

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan is facing a wave of lawsuits across the state accusing the insurance giant of pocketing millions of dollars in hidden fees from local governments and others to administer their health care plans.

23 Nov 2010

Kansas hospitals report sharp increases in uncompensated care

News outlets report on a dramatic increase in uncompensated care at Kansas hospitals because of the economic downturn and a new study that finds poor families with high-deductible plans often put off needed care.

23 Nov 2010

Government orders three Medicare advantage plans to stop marketing, enrolling new members

The U.S. government's Medicare program has ordered three health insurers Universal American Corp. (UAM), Health Net Inc. (HNT) and Arcadian Health to stop marketing to and enrolling new members in their Medicare Advantage health and prescription-drug plans, saying the companies violated regulations.

23 Nov 2010

Health on The Hill - November 22, 2010

Kaiser Health News staff writers Mary Agnes Carey and Julie Appleby talk with KFF's Jackie Judd about recent health policy developments, including the newly released Health and Human Services regulations dealing with the medical loss ratio and the status in Congress of the one-month patch to prevent physicians who see Medicare patients from having their payments reduced.

23 Nov 2010

Today's Op-Eds: HMOs, the 'fixed' middlemen; you can't keep your coverage; the (in) effectiveness of medical cost control

Wouldn't it be better to let HMOs compete to offer the cheapest most innovative plans-rather than having the plans defined by new exchanges that must follow federal rules and meanwhile allow the HMOs a generous fixed middleman share of total health pie.

23 Nov 2010

CEO Cancer Gold Standard employee wellness program highlighted in Harvard Business Review

The latest issue of Harvard Business Review highlighted the CEO Cancer Gold Standard, as an example of a high quality, signature program that can boost the overall effectiveness of a broad spectrum of workplace wellness initiatives. In an article entitled, "What's the Hard Return on Employee Wellness Programs?" it was shown that the return on investment (ROI) of effective workplace wellness programs can be as high as 6 to 1.

23 Nov 2010

Racial disparities in risk and survival among children with neuroblastoma: Study

Black, Asian, and Native American children are more likely than white and Hispanic children to die after being treated for neuroblastoma, according to new research on the pediatric cancer. The study, of more than 3,500 patients with the disease, is the largest ever to look at racial disparities in risk and survival for the most common solid cancer found in young children.

23 Nov 2010

HHS Secretary launches new application cycle for NHSC Loan Repayment Program

HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius today announced the launch of the new application cycle for the National Health Service Corps (NHSC) Loan Repayment Program, during a visit to Total Health Care, a community health center in Baltimore.

23 Nov 2010

Implanted devices to treat cardiac dysfunction show success in real world use

Implanted devices that treat cardiac dysfunction in heart failure patients are as successful in "real world" use as they are in controlled clinical trial settings, according to a large new study reported in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.

23 Nov 2010

Health Care News and Research

AP reports on 'significant' clarification of Pope's comments on condoms to prevent HIV

Meningitis immunization program to launch in 3 African countries next month

Daily oral antiretroviral reduces HIV infection risk in MSM by 44%, study finds

Lifestyle-related diseases will be costly down the road; Americans rate their healthcare highly

Study estimates cost savings associated with global polio eradication; global post examines vaccination efforts in Africa

Health spending proposals, health law repeal divide lawmakers

Two surveys show 'huge variation' in health costs in U.S.

UNAIDS report finds new HIV infections dropped by 20% over 10 years, deaths from AIDS-related illness dropped by 20% over 5 years

Insuring your health: Retirees can find insuring young adult children difficult

'Telehealth' devices allow patients to track illnesses from home

Feds recover $3 billion in health care fraud and other settlements

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan faces new lawsuits, GOP in Florida looks to malpractice reform to help draw doctors to Medicaid program

Kansas hospitals report sharp increases in uncompensated care

Government orders three Medicare advantage plans to stop marketing, enrolling new members

Health on The Hill - November 22, 2010

Today's Op-Eds: HMOs, the 'fixed' middlemen; you can't keep your coverage; the (in) effectiveness of medical cost control

CEO Cancer Gold Standard employee wellness program highlighted in Harvard Business Review

Racial disparities in risk and survival among children with neuroblastoma: Study

HHS Secretary launches new application cycle for NHSC Loan Repayment Program

Implanted devices to treat cardiac dysfunction show success in real world use

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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