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The health law's future: Prose on politics and policies

Politico reports on how the elections of 2012 will dictate the future of the health law. Also, other news outlets report on states' efforts to figure out what to do if the individual mandate is struck down, the essential benefits package, the development of health exchanges and where things stand with accountable care organizations.

10 Oct 2011

Potential vaccine against trachoma

An attenuated, or weakened, strain of Chlamydia trachomatis bacteria can be used as a vaccine to prevent or reduce the severity of trachoma, the world's leading cause of infectious blindness, suggest findings from a National Institutes of Health study in monkeys.

10 Oct 2011

AAD applauds California for prohibiting indoor tanning device use among youngsters

Today California Governor Edmund G. Brown signed a bill into law that will prohibit the use of indoor tanning devices for all Californians under the age of 18.

10 Oct 2011

UMass Amherst SPHHS wins HHS award to create Public Health Training Center

Training to improve the nation's public health system by strengthening the technical, scientific, managerial and leadership competence of current and future public health workers will soon be underway in Springfield, Holyoke, Pittsfield and the Berkshires, supported by a four-year, $2.5 million grant to the School of Public Health and Health Sciences (SPHHS) at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.

10 Oct 2011

CMS, FDA launch 'parallel review' pilot program for medical devices

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) today launched a "parallel review" pilot program for concurrent review of medical devices for FDA approval and Medicare coverage.

10 Oct 2011

Coalition calls for affordable and flexible essential health benefits package

The newly-formed Essential Health Benefits Coalition today urged the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to hold the cost and affordability of the essential health benefits package paramount as recommended by the Institute of Medicine (IOM).

7 Oct 2011

IOM: Essential benefits package must be developed with affordability in mind

In its 297-page report, the Institute of Medicine recommended that cost should be a factor in deciding what benefits would be included in plans sold on the health law's new insurance exchanges.

7 Oct 2011

First combination drug to treat type 2 diabetes and high cholesterol receives FDA approval

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Juvisync (sitagliptin and simvastatin), a fixed-dose combination (FDC) prescription medication that contains two previously approved medicines in one tablet for use in adults who need both sitagliptin and simvastatin.

7 Oct 2011

Public perceives health law parts better than whole; Obama increasingly critical to measure's future

Some of the law's specific provisions draw stronger support than the entire package, but the real key to the measure's future is increasingly linked to President Barack Obama's polling numbers.

7 Oct 2011

Preventive task force panel will urge men to skip prostate screening, reports say

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force is scheduled to issue this recommendation on Tuesday, but advance press reports indicate the expert panel will urge the federal government to change its current position to recommend that men under age 75 forgo this widely used test.

7 Oct 2011

First Edition: October 7, 2011

In today's headlines, reports about what the Institute of Medicine recommends in terms of the criteria and methods the Department of Health and Human Services should follow in developing the health law's essential benefits package.

7 Oct 2011

NHC applauds IOM for recommendations on how to develop EHB package

The National Health Council (NHC) applauded the Institute of Medicine (IOM) for its thoughtful recommendations to the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) on how to develop an essential health benefits (EHB) package.

7 Oct 2011

CLASS implementation oversight listed in HHS work plan

But GOP lawmakers are seeking an actuarial report from the Department of Health and Human Services that may offer insights into this controversial long-term care insurance program's fiscal viability.

7 Oct 2011

On campaign stump, Obama embraces 'Obamacare'

Also on the trail, a conservative group has launched ads aimed at derailing Mitt Romney's run for the GOP presidential nomination. One of their reasons: his record on health reform while governor of Massachusetts. Meanwhile, at a fundraiser, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius charges Republicans with turning back the clock on women's health.

7 Oct 2011

Hints of progress emerge from 'super committee' deliberations

A top GOP House lawmaker hopes the deficit-cutting panel will focus entirely on health care costs to reach the $1.2 trillion savings target. Meanwhile, in the background, the Wall Street Journal reports that nearly half of all U.S. households receive government benefits, with about 34% getting means-tested assistance such as Medicaid.

7 Oct 2011

NIH/FDA study to monitor and assess impacts of new government tobacco regulations

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the National Institutes of Health today announced a joint, large-scale, national study of tobacco users to monitor and assess the behavioral and health impacts of new government tobacco regulations.

7 Oct 2011

SAMHSA announces new grant program, Behavioral Health Treatment Court Collaboratives

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) today announced $13 million in new grants to help state and local courts offer treatment and recovery support instead of incarceration for individuals who are in a court system due to mental health or substance use disorders.

4 Oct 2011

DNA primer vaccine enhances immune response to H5N1 avian influenza vaccine

The immune response to an H5N1 avian influenza vaccine was greatly enhanced in healthy adults if they were first primed with a DNA vaccine expressing a gene for a key H5N1 protein, researchers say.

4 Oct 2011

New report details mental health care gaps in Indian Country

According to the Health and Human Services Inspector General's office, one in five hospitals and clinics in Indian Country provides no mental health services. Meanwhile, The Fiscal Times reports on the mental health toll being taken by the recession.

4 Oct 2011

CDRH report highlights scientific activities that support medical device industry

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration's Center for Devices and Radiological Health (CDRH) today released a report highlighting scientific activities that support the medical device industry and product development, while maintaining the safety and effectiveness of the products.

4 Oct 2011

Health and Human Services News and Research

The health law's future: Prose on politics and policies

Potential vaccine against trachoma

AAD applauds California for prohibiting indoor tanning device use among youngsters

UMass Amherst SPHHS wins HHS award to create Public Health Training Center

CMS, FDA launch 'parallel review' pilot program for medical devices

Coalition calls for affordable and flexible essential health benefits package

IOM: Essential benefits package must be developed with affordability in mind

First combination drug to treat type 2 diabetes and high cholesterol receives FDA approval

Public perceives health law parts better than whole; Obama increasingly critical to measure's future

Preventive task force panel will urge men to skip prostate screening, reports say

First Edition: October 7, 2011

NHC applauds IOM for recommendations on how to develop EHB package

CLASS implementation oversight listed in HHS work plan

On campaign stump, Obama embraces 'Obamacare'

Hints of progress emerge from 'super committee' deliberations

NIH/FDA study to monitor and assess impacts of new government tobacco regulations

SAMHSA announces new grant program, Behavioral Health Treatment Court Collaboratives

DNA primer vaccine enhances immune response to H5N1 avian influenza vaccine

New report details mental health care gaps in Indian Country

CDRH report highlights scientific activities that support medical device industry

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