Health and Human Services News and Research

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NHGRI funds assessment of public attitudes about population-based studies on genes and environment

The National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI) has announced it has awarded $2 million to the Genetics and Public Policy Center of the Berman Bioethics Institute at Johns Hopkins University to conduct a public discussion about future potential large U.S. population-based studies examining the roles of genes and environment in human health.

28 Sep 2006

Hospital services most expensive part of U.S. health aystem

About 33% of every dollar spent on U.S. health care goes toward inpatient hospital care, according to a report by HHS's Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, the Washington Times reports (Howard Price, Washington Times, 9/23).

26 Sep 2006

Bill to allow U.S. residents to bring prescription drugs across the Canadian border

Mary Agnes Carey, associate editor of CQ HealthBeat, discusses an appropriations bill that would allow U.S. residents to bring prescription drugs across the Canadian border, legislation to reauthorize NIH and the pending approval of Andrew von Eschenbach to head FDA in this week's "Health on the Hill from kaisernetwork.org and CQ."

26 Sep 2006

New Hampshire nursing homes file complaint seeking $4.4m in Medicaid reimbursements

About 60 of New Hampshire's 78 nursing homes have signed a complaint alleging that the state Department of Health and Human Services owes them $4.4 million for care provided to Medicaid beneficiaries since 2002, the Concord Monitor reports.

22 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

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

Most Federal scientists accused of conflicts of interest avoid criminal investigations

Only two of the 44 NIH scientists found to have violated ethics rules on outside consulting agreements with health care companies face investigations for possible criminal activity, and they remain employed by the federal government, the AP/Arizona Daily Star reports (Beamish, AP/Arizona Daily Star, 9/13).

14 Sep 2006

Prospect for passage of final health care IT bill uncertain

Negotiations to reconcile House and Senate versions of legislation that would promote the implementation of health care information technology have not progressed, and prospects for passage of a final bill prior to the midterm elections are uncertain, according to congressional aides, CongressDaily reports (Lee, CongressDaily, 9/12).

13 Sep 2006

Concerns that stem cell study could influence future embryonic stem cell legislation

Technique that could derive human embryonic stem cells without destroying human embryos, recently published in the journal Nature, could impede funding for stem cell research in this week's "Health on the Hill From kaisernetwork.org and CQ."

13 Sep 2006

New Yorkers lied to in aftermath of 9/11

A new study released this week says thousands of World Trade Center responders have developed chronic and disabling illnesses that are likely to be permanent.

12 Sep 2006

Unprecedented number of CDC staff resigned or retired in last two years

In the last two years, an "unprecedented" number of CDC staff has resigned or retired from the agency, prompting some officials to express concern, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports (Young, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 9/10).

11 Sep 2006

'Plenty of time' to pass final health care IT Bill, Rep. Deal says

House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health Chair Nathan Deal (R-Ga.) on Thursday said Congress has "plenty of time" prior to midterm elections to pass legislation that would promote the implementation of health care information technology, CQ HealthBeat reports (Reichard, CQ HealthBeat, 9/7).

11 Sep 2006

Sens. Specter, Harkin say 'hype' surrounding Nature study harms chances of expanding Federal stem cell funding

"Hype" surrounding a study published in the Aug. 24 edition of the journal Nature describing a technique that could derive human embryonic stem cells without destroying the embryo is harming chances of approving legislation to expand federal funding for embryonic stem cell research, CQ HealthBeat reports (Reichard, CQ HealthBeat, 9/6).

7 Sep 2006

Reps. Price, Baldwin urge passage of bill that would encourage State health coverage expansion proposals

Reps. Tom Price (R-Ga.) and Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.) on Wednesday at a joint event by the Brookings Institution and Heritage Foundation encouraged lawmakers to back a bill (HR 5864) that would "allow states to act as laboratories where lawmakers could test methods to reduce the number of uninsured Americans," CQ HealthBeat reports.

7 Sep 2006

NIH launches "Knockout Mouse Project"

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) today awarded a set of cooperative agreements, totaling up to $52 million over five years, to launch the Knockout Mouse Project.

7 Sep 2006

NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital learning from 9/11

With the nation's busiest burn center and the metropolitan area's largest hospital Emergency Medical Services (EMS) fleet, NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital rescued and treated many survivors of the Sept. 11, 2001, attack on the World Trade Center.

7 Sep 2006

Report questions CMS Cancer Care Research Program

HHS inspector general Daniel Levinson in a report released on Wednesday questioned the legitimacy of a one-year research program conducted by CMS in which the federal government and Medicare beneficiaries paid oncologists a total of about $275 million to report information on chemotherapy side effects that might lead to improved care for cancer patients, the AP/South Florida Sun Sentinel reports.

30 Aug 2006

Schering-Plough to pay $435M and plead guilty to conspiracy

Schering-Plough on Tuesday agreed to pay $435 million and plead guilty to criminal conspiracy charges to settle a federal investigation into the company's marketing practices and Medicaid charges, the AP/Houston Chronicle reports (AP/Houston Chronicle, 8/30).

30 Aug 2006

New microchip enables quick diagnosis of flu strains

Scientists from the University of Colorado at Boulder and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have developed a microchip-based test that may allow more labs to diagnose influenza infections and learn more about the viruses causing illness.

30 Aug 2006

Many programs to recruit, train minority providers lose federal grant money this year

HHS recently awarded four institutions across the country $11.8 million in Center of Excellence grants, which over three years will fund training, recruitment and retention of medical students and medical faculty members from underrepresented racial and ethnic groups, the New York Times reports.

28 Aug 2006

Health and Human Services News and Research

NHGRI funds assessment of public attitudes about population-based studies on genes and environment

Hospital services most expensive part of U.S. health aystem

Bill to allow U.S. residents to bring prescription drugs across the Canadian border

New Hampshire nursing homes file complaint seeking $4.4m in Medicaid reimbursements

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

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

Most Federal scientists accused of conflicts of interest avoid criminal investigations

Prospect for passage of final health care IT bill uncertain

Concerns that stem cell study could influence future embryonic stem cell legislation

New Yorkers lied to in aftermath of 9/11

Unprecedented number of CDC staff resigned or retired in last two years

'Plenty of time' to pass final health care IT Bill, Rep. Deal says

Sens. Specter, Harkin say 'hype' surrounding Nature study harms chances of expanding Federal stem cell funding

Reps. Price, Baldwin urge passage of bill that would encourage State health coverage expansion proposals

NIH launches "Knockout Mouse Project"

NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital learning from 9/11

Report questions CMS Cancer Care Research Program

Schering-Plough to pay $435M and plead guilty to conspiracy

New microchip enables quick diagnosis of flu strains

Many programs to recruit, train minority providers lose federal grant money this year

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From Discovery Biology to ELRIG Chair

Breathing New Life into Diagnostics: Plasmion's SICRIT Technology

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