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Some Alabama abortion clinics facing difficulties finding local physicians to provide backup services

Some abortion-rights advocates in Alabama say it has become increasingly difficult for abortion clinics to find local physicians who will serve as backups for abortion providers because of fears they will be targeted and harassed by abortion-rights opponents, AP/Columbus Ledger-Enquirer reports.

20 Sep 2006

Women who quit smoking during pregnancy less likely to remain nonsmokers because of concerns about weight

Women who quit smoking before pregnancy are less likely to remain nonsmokers after giving birth largely because of concerns about gaining weight, according to a study to be published in the October issue of the Annals of Behavioral Medicine, the Los Angeles Times reports.

20 Sep 2006

USAID issues $15M grant to Ugandan religious coalition

USAID through the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief issued a $15 million three-year grant to the Inter-Religious Council of Uganda -- a coalition of five religious groups that promote faith-based strategies to fight the HIV/AIDS epidemic, AFP/Today Online reports.

20 Sep 2006

160 HIV-positive delegates at XVI International AIDS conference make refugee claims in Canada

About 160 HIV-positive people who entered Canada from other countries to attend the XVI International AIDS Conference in Toronto last month have made refugee claims to stay in the country, Toronto's Globe and Mail reports.

20 Sep 2006

Federal law allows consumers to qualify for Medicaid, retain assets

Under a new federal law, residents of about 20 states in 2007 will be able to purchase simplified, long-term care coverage, and if that coverage runs out, they could qualify for Medicaid, even if they have assets totaling more than $2,000, the South Florida Sun-Sentinel reports.

20 Sep 2006

Senate majority leader Frist hopes to hold vote on revised 'Association Health Plan Bill' this month

Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) this month hopes to hold a floor vote on a revised version of a bill (S 1995) that would allow small businesses and trade associations to form association health plans across state lines, according to a Frist spokesperson, CongressDaily reports.

20 Sep 2006

Alliance between disability advocates, Bush administration officials helped develop program to encourage home care for Medicaid beneficiaries

NPR's "Morning Edition" on Friday examined how an "unlikely alliance" between a group of disability advocates and Bush administration officials resulted in a major change to federal funding for long-term care of Medicaid beneficiaries (Shapiro, "Morning Edition," NPR, 9/15).

20 Sep 2006

Insurance companies promote use of generic drugs in effort to cut costs

The Chicago Tribune on Sunday examined how some private insurers, in an attempt to reduce health care costs by encouraging the use of generic drugs, "are showering customers with free generic drug samples, waiving copayments and marketing directly to consumers in doctors' offices."

20 Sep 2006

Health IT legislation should allow portability for electronic health records

"Steps are now under way to bring ... lifesaving" electronic health records to all hospitals and physician offices in the U.S., but "Congress is considering a bill that would make it harder to allow your information to follow you throughout your health care treatment," former National Coordinator for Health Information Technology David Brailer writes in a New York Times opinion piece.

20 Sep 2006

Preconception care for improving perinatal outcomes: The time to act

Continued improvements in the infant and maternal mortality rates will depend on interventions before a woman becomes pregnant, according to officials from the March of Dimes, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other experts.

19 Sep 2006

Most working adults shopping for individual insurance turned down or found it too costly

Of working-age U.S. residents who sought individual health coverage in the last three years, 89% were rejected for medical reasons or felt that the available plans were unaffordable, according to a study released last week by the Commonwealth Fund, the Los Angeles Times reports.

18 Sep 2006

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois coverage policy for partial-breast radiation therapy to be reviewed

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois' policy that it does not cover partial-breast radiation therapy was scheduled to be reviewed last Wednesday in Dallas during a three-day meeting of Health Care Service Corporation officials, the Chicago Sun-Times reports.

18 Sep 2006

House Democrats introduce bill that aims to reduce unintended pregnancies, abortions

Rep. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio), who opposes abortion rights, Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.), who supports abortion rights, and other House Democrats last Thursday at a press conference announced the introduction of legislation (HR 6067) that aims to reduce the number of unintended pregnancies and abortions, Copley/Canton Repository reports.

18 Sep 2006

House subcomittee hearing focuses on disciplinary measures for NIH scientists' ethnics violations

NIH officials have not adequately disciplined agency scientists found to have violated ethics rules, members of the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations said at a hearing last Wednesday.

18 Sep 2006

Black women living in South Carolina are more likely to develop cancers

Black women living in South Carolina are more likely to develop and die from breast and cervical cancers, compared to white women, according to a study published in the Journal of the South Carolina Medical Association, the AP/WHNS reports.

18 Sep 2006

HIV-positive Batwa in Democratic Republic of the Congo have little access to treatment

Although HIV prevalence among the Batwa, or pygmies, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo is estimated to be lower than the rate for the entire country, "little help is available" for HIV-positive Batwa because of the community's poverty, undernutrition, "social isolation" and lack of health care services, PlusNews reports.

18 Sep 2006

Racial gap in childhood vaccination rate closes

The overall vaccination rate among black children ages 19 months to 35 months last year for the first time equaled rates among white, Asian and Hispanic children in the same age group, according to a CDC report released recently, the AP/Seattle Post-Intelligencer reports.

18 Sep 2006

Chemical dump in Ivory Coast - WHO provides public health support

The first members of WHO's international team arrived in Abidjan this week to support the Ministry of Health in dealing with an environmental health emergency caused by toxic waste.

18 Sep 2006

India must enhance HIV/AIDS programs in Uttar Pradesh to defeat epidemic

India must scale up its HIV/AIDS programs in the densely populated state of Uttar Pradesh to accurately estimate the number of HIV-positive people and curb the epidemic, according to HIV/AIDS advocates, Reuters India reports.

14 Sep 2006

British tackle childrens' tooth decay in deprived areas

A British scheme to encourage families with young children in disadvantaged areas to get into the habit of brushing their children's teeth regularly with fluoride toothpaste was launched by Health Minster Rosie Winterton today at the Appleby health centre in Newham - an area with one of the highest oral health needs in the country.

14 Sep 2006

Health Care News and Research

Some Alabama abortion clinics facing difficulties finding local physicians to provide backup services

Women who quit smoking during pregnancy less likely to remain nonsmokers because of concerns about weight

USAID issues $15M grant to Ugandan religious coalition

160 HIV-positive delegates at XVI International AIDS conference make refugee claims in Canada

Federal law allows consumers to qualify for Medicaid, retain assets

Senate majority leader Frist hopes to hold vote on revised 'Association Health Plan Bill' this month

Alliance between disability advocates, Bush administration officials helped develop program to encourage home care for Medicaid beneficiaries

Insurance companies promote use of generic drugs in effort to cut costs

Health IT legislation should allow portability for electronic health records

Preconception care for improving perinatal outcomes: The time to act

Most working adults shopping for individual insurance turned down or found it too costly

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois coverage policy for partial-breast radiation therapy to be reviewed

House Democrats introduce bill that aims to reduce unintended pregnancies, abortions

House subcomittee hearing focuses on disciplinary measures for NIH scientists' ethnics violations

Black women living in South Carolina are more likely to develop cancers

HIV-positive Batwa in Democratic Republic of the Congo have little access to treatment

Racial gap in childhood vaccination rate closes

Chemical dump in Ivory Coast - WHO provides public health support

India must enhance HIV/AIDS programs in Uttar Pradesh to defeat epidemic

British tackle childrens' tooth decay in deprived areas

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