Contraceptive News and Research

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First Edition: May 22, 2012

Today's headlines include reports about a lawsuit brought by Catholic organizations against the Obama administration's contraception coverage rule and a new recommendation on PSA screening by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force.

22 May 2012

Despite contraception controversy, Sebeilus to speak today at Georgetown University

Criticism about Health and Human Services Sec. Kathleen Sebelius' appearance at the Jesuit institution has mounted this week because of her role in the Obama administration's rule on contraception requirements in the health care law.

19 May 2012

Loss of U.S. funding for UNFPA 'would be devastating' to family planning services in developing countries

"By voting to ban any U.S. contribution to UNFPA" in the FY 2013 State and Foreign Operations appropriations bill, the House Appropriations Committee on Thursday "made a judgment call that saving the lives of women and girls around the world is simply not a U.S. priority," Valerie DeFillipo, president of Friends of UNFPA, writes in a Huffington Post "Global Motherhood" opinion piece.

19 May 2012

D.C. abortion bill to get hearing; Mo. considers allowing employers to opt-out of contraception coverage mandate

The House is considering a bill that would ban abortions in the District of Columbia after 20 weeks of pregnancy. Elsewhere, Missouri lawmakers consider allowing businesses to opt-out of a federal mandate to cover contraception in their health plans and another Catholic university -- this one in Florida -- considers dumping its health plan instead of complying with the mandate.

18 May 2012

Contraception coverage rule ripples through college campuses

A fight over allowing HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius -- a key player in creating a mandate to force student health plans to cover contraception -- to speak at Georgetown's graduation continues. In the meantime, a Catholic university in Ohio is ending its student health insurance plan instead of complying with the mandate.

17 May 2012

FDA decides to strengthen warning labels on oral contraceptive YAZ, Yasmin

The Federal Drug Administration (FDA) has recently decided to strengthen warning labels on the oral contraceptive YAZ and its sister drug Yasmin regarding increased risks of blood clots from using the medications.

17 May 2012

NEJM publishes results from Celgene’s REVLIMID phase III studies on MM

Celgene International Sàrl, a subsidiary of Celgene Corporation, today announced that results from three phase III studies evaluating the use of continuous REVLIMID(lenalidomide) treatment in newly diagnosed multiple myeloma (MM) patients or maintenance treatment with lenalidomide following autologous stem cell transplant were published online in the May 10, 2012 edition of the New England Journal of Medicine.

11 May 2012

Newsweek examines Melinda Gates' focus on family planning issues

"In an exclusive interview with Newsweek," Melinda Gates, co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, discussed how "she has decided to make family planning her signature issue and primary public health a priority."

8 May 2012

Obama, Romney and their supporters debate government role in health care

[Bill] Clinton defended the Affordable Care Act that Obama signed into law in 2010, which is now the subject of debate among U.S. Supreme Court justices who are weighing the constitutionality of the legislation's requirement that all people have health insurance.

7 May 2012

First Edition: May 7, 2012

Today's health policy highlights include reports detailing what's ahead this week on Capitol Hill as well as state-level developments.

7 May 2012

Ariz. Gov. signs law aimed at abortion providers; Court orders Texas to keep paying Planned Parenthood

Arizona Governor Jan Brewer on Friday signed into law a bill banning abortion providers like Planned Parenthood from receiving money through the state, her office said in a statement.

7 May 2012

Teva announces new data from women's health franchise

Teva Women's Health today announced new data from the Company's expanding women's health franchise will be featured at the 60th Annual Clinical Meeting of the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) in San Diego, California, May 5-9, 2012.

5 May 2012

Latest skirmish over 'war on women' touches a number of health policy concerns

NPR reports that the latest flashpoint involves a $15 billion cut from the health law's prevention trust fund. Meanwhile, The Washington Post offers a fact check on stats offered by the Romney campaign about the Obama administration and women.

3 May 2012

Questions raised over U.K. DfID funding and sterilization in India

A Wall Street Journal editorial addresses reports published on April 14 in the Guardian alleging that the U.K. Department for International Development (DfID) funded a program in India that "has 'forcibly sterilized Indian women and men' -- a practice India supposedly left behind in the 1970s," the editorial states.

3 May 2012

First Edition: May 2, 2012

Today's headlines include a report that House Republican lawmakers want to cut bonuses to states for enrolling low-income kids in Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program.

3 May 2012

Experts identify new gene that could help development of human fertility treatments

Experts from Durham University have identified a new gene that could help the development of fertility treatments in humans in the future.

2 May 2012

Contraceptive pill could soon be given out to 13 year olds without prescription

According to an NHS report girls as young as 13 should be given the contraceptive pill without having to see a doctor. Normally girls and women can only go on the Pill once they have undergone a thorough consultation with a GP or nurse as it can cause side effects including blood clots.

26 Apr 2012

Arizona OKs contraception bill, moves close to defunding Planned Parenthood

Arizona legislators gave final approval to a bill allowing employers to opt out of covering contraception in their health plans while moving one step closer to barring Planned Parenthood from public funding in a separate bill. Debates over contraception and abortion also dominate state capitols in Texas, Nebraska and Minnesota.

21 Apr 2012

Orthopaedic research studies in the Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery

Below are highlights of orthopaedic research studies appearing in the April 18th issue of the Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery (JBJS), as well as the issue's full Table of Contents.

21 Apr 2012