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More homeowners modify houses to "age in place"

The Seattle Times/The Orlando Sentinel: "The new catch phrase among homeowners is 'aging in place.' Instead of selling their homes and moving into retirement villages or assisted-living quarters, a growing number of older Americans are modifying their homes to make them more user-friendly as they age. The concept has caught on so successfully, it even has its own National Aging in Place Week, which falls on Oct. 11-16 this year."

23 Jul 2010

Michigan challenge to health law begins

The Detroit News: On Wednesday, "[a] federal judge heard arguments [in the] lawsuit that is being watched nationwide for its challenge of congressional authority to reform health care in a way that would penalize citizens who fail to obtain their own health insurance." The attorney for one plaintiff, The Thomas More Law Center, a group espousing religious principles, said, "There is no precedent for this power grab" (Guthrie, 7/22).

23 Jul 2010

New findings on "successful aging"

What, exactly, does "successful aging" mean? For more than a half century, researchers and gerontologists have argued whether successful aging is better defined subjectively or objectively (physical disease-related disability or mental decline). Answering this question is more than an academic exercise. As the first members of the famed "baby boom generation" reach age 65, understanding what it means to remain healthy and independent in later life could have an enormous impact on health care delivery and medical policy.

23 Jul 2010

Funding for new medical ventures improving

The Dallas Morning News reports on the funding climate for health care technology startups.

23 Jul 2010

AIDS 2010 studies, releases: Criminalization, discrimination of high-risk groups; Test-and-treat; UNAIDS launches HIV prevention commission

The criminalization of men who have sex with men (MSM) and transgender people in Asia is holding back efforts to contain HIV/AIDS in the region, according to a report presented Wednesday by the U.N. Development Program (UNDP) and Asia Pacific Coalition on Male Sexual Health at the International AIDS Conference-AIDS 2010, VOA News reports. The report "linked the criminalization of homosexual behavior to an increase in the infection rate of HIV and AIDS in Asia," the news service writes (Dewan, 7/21).

23 Jul 2010

AIDS 2010: Halving HIV/TB co-infection deaths; Financial transaction tax discussed, and more

UNAIDS and the Stop TB Partnership joined together on Thursday at the International AIDS Conference-AIDS 2010 in Vienna, Austria, with the goal of preventing 200,000 deaths annually from HIV and tuberculosis co-infection, Agence France-Presse reports. TB is the number one killer of people living with HIV/AIDS (Ingham, 7/22).

23 Jul 2010

KHN column -- Massachusetts shows federal reform headed for trouble

In this Kaiser Health News column, Grace-Marie Turner writes that Massachusetts' health reform has increased demand without increasing the supply of health care providers, it continues to keep people in the dark about the true cost of health care and health insurance, and has not changed incentives for people to seek more affordable options or for a truly competitive marketplace.

23 Jul 2010

KHN column – Dispatch from Massachusetts: The individual mandate is working

In his latest Kaiser Health News column, Austin Frakt writes: "In Massachusetts, the individual mandate requiring state residents to buy health insurance is working. Yet, a similar requirement remains among the more controversial elements of the new national health reform law. Opponents of the mandate resent being required to purchase a product they may not want.

23 Jul 2010

Today's OpEds: The challenge of medicare spending; Two views of Massachussets; Regulating premiums

Health reform can be assessed from the perspective of four groups that collectively include most Americans. For those who are now in Medicaid or who are uninsured, reform will be a major gain. For those who obtain health insurance in the individual and small-group markets, reform should bring improvements. For those who have health insurance from midsize- and large-group insurers, reform will bring little change. Finally, for Medicare beneficiaries, reform promises to bring positive change.

23 Jul 2010

Drugs can save African infants' lives

Researchers at the University of Sydney have found the combined intake of iron-folic acid supplements with World Health Organisation (WHO)-endorsed anti-malarial drugs during pregnancy could reduce early infant mortality in sub-Saharan Africa by a quarter.

22 Jul 2010

Bristol-Myers Squibb second-quarter net sales increase 2% to $4.8 billion

Bristol-Myers Squibb Company today reported results for the second quarter of 2010 which featured data on key marketed and investigational compounds in its oncology, diabetes and cardiovascular franchises, and growth in sales and EPS. The company also confirmed guidance for 2010 and minimum guidance for non-GAAP EPS in 2013.

22 Jul 2010

3M second-quarter global sales increase 17.7% to $6.7 billion

3M today reported record second-quarter earnings of $1.54 per share on sales of $6.7 billion. Sales and per-share earnings increased 17.7 percent and 37.5 percent, respectively, versus the second quarter of 2009. Excluding special items recorded in the second quarter of 2009, earnings per share rose 28.3 percent.

22 Jul 2010

First Edition: July 22, 2010

Today's headlines reflect news about health reform implementation activities, health information technology and sparring opinions about the Massachusetts experience.

22 Jul 2010

Four areas that impact weight, obesity in women identified

The information gap and general lack of understanding of obesity's unique and disproportionate impact on women contributes to the challenges of the 65 million American women who are considered overweight or obese, said the Strategies to Overcome and Prevent (STOP) Obesity Alliance Task Force on Women at a meeting on Capitol Hill today.

22 Jul 2010

Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield launches initiative to educate consumers on how to best access ER alternatives

At a time when health care costs continue to rise and hospitals are advertising emergency room availability, it is becoming more important to educate consumers on how to best access ER alternatives and receive the same care with less out-of-pocket cost. If a primary care physician isn't available, retail health clinics, walk-in doctor offices and urgent care centers can take less time and cost about the same as a regular doctor visit.

22 Jul 2010

Correlates of HIV stigma in HIV-positive women: Study

For some women, planning a family can be the first step towards one of life's most rewarding experiences. But a study led by Ryerson University researchers has found strong evidence that some HIV-positive women feel that they are being judged negatively by their healthcare providers for wanting to become moms and feel stigmatized by their physicians due to their medical condition.

22 Jul 2010

VA approves $2.8M for Gulf War Veterans' illness research program

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has approved $2.8 million to fund three new research projects that focus on testing or developing new treatments for illnesses affecting Veterans who served in the Gulf War 1990-1991. The research incorporates recommendations of the department's Gulf War Veterans' Illnesses Task Force.

22 Jul 2010