Health and Human Services News and Research

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2 million children with insured parents are uninsured in the U.S.

Some 2.3 million children a year, mostly from low- to middle-income families, have no health care coverage to pay for preventive or other medical needs, even though at least one of their parents is insured, according to a new study supported by HHS' Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality and the National Center for Research Resources, part of HHS' National Institutes of Health.

6 Nov 2008

Contaminants in human milk

An overview of studies on environmental pollutants in human milk has found that not breastfeeding an infant typically poses more of a threat than does exposure to any of the chemical agents measured in human milk, as reported in the 11th Annual Children’s Health Issue of Environmental Health Perspectives (EHP).

6 Nov 2008

FDA grants tentative approval for 75th generic anti-retroviral drug

The Food and Drug Administration within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has reached the milestone of the 75th anti-retroviral generic drug approved or tentatively approved as part of President Bush's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR).

29 Oct 2008

Protect yourself from flu by wearing a mask and washing your hands

In what has been termed a landmark new study, it is suggested that wearing masks and washing hands prevents the spread of flu-like symptoms.

28 Oct 2008

Gardasil safety questioned, CDC urged to back up statement with data

The National Vaccine Information Center (NVIC) is calling on the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to publicly release the study design, data and names of principal investigators involved in a statement this week maintaining that Gardasil vaccine is safe with no serious side effects.

26 Oct 2008

Gene study sheds new light on lung cancer

A multi-institution team, funded by the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), today reported results of the largest effort to date to chart the genetic changes involved in the most common form of lung cancer, lung adenocarcinoma. The findings should help pave the way for more individualized approaches for detecting and treating the nation's leading cause of cancer deaths.

22 Oct 2008

Trius Therapeutics awarded $28 million to develop novel drugs targeting bacterial DNA Gyrase and Topoisomerase IV

Trius Therapeutics, Inc., today announced the award of a $28 million contract from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), a component of the National Institutes of Health, for the development of novel antibiotics directed against multiple Gram-negative bacterial pathogens.

22 Oct 2008

Birth control has long term effect on hormone exposure

Researchers at Wake Forest University School of Medicine may be one step closer to understanding why past oral contraceptive use dramatically lowers the risk of ovarian and uterine cancers later in life.

20 Oct 2008

Cumulative spending on Medicaid benefits projected to reach $4.9 trillion over 10 years

Under current law, spending on Medicaid is expected to substantially outpace the rate of growth in the U.S. economy over the next decade, according to a new annual report released today by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).

19 Oct 2008

Antiretroviral drug efavirenz associated with better outcomes in HIV-infected adults

A study led by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health found that HIV-infected patients taking the antiretroviral drug efavirenz were more likely to adhere to treatment and less likely to experience virologic failure and death compared to patients taking nevirapine.

14 Oct 2008

Newspapers examine efforts, reaction to easing ban on HIV-positive visitors to U.S.

Some HIV/AIDS advocates are "being cautious with their optimism" regarding new immigration rules for HIV-positive visitors as well as HHS efforts to remove HIV from the list of diseases barring entry into the U.S., the San Francisco Chronicle reports (Fulbright, San Francisco Chronicle, 10/2).

5 Oct 2008

Senate Finance Committee leaders raise concerns about problems in Medicare appeals office

Senate Finance Committee Chair Max Baucus (D-Mont.) and ranking member Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) in a letter recently sent to HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt raised concerns about alleged problems in the Office of Medicare Hearings and Appeals, CQ HealthBeat reports.

5 Oct 2008

MedPAC hearing panelists call for residency programs to move away from hospital-centered care, toward treatment of chronic illnesses

Residency programs should place greater emphasis on the treatment of chronic diseases and on incorporating health information technology because current graduate medical education focuses too heavily on hospital-centered care, panelists told the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission on Thursday, CQ HealthBeat reports.

5 Oct 2008

HHS should act quickly to end travel restrictions for HIV-positive people, editorial says

HHS should take action "soon to end a de facto form of discrimination" by rewriting its rules prohibiting HIV-positive people from visiting the U.S., a Washington Post editorial says, adding that the continuation of the policy "puts the United States in the company of countries such as Libya, Saudi Arabia and Sudan."

29 Sep 2008

Obama releases new ad criticizing McCain on health insurance regulation

Democratic presidential nominee Sen. Barack Obama (Ill.) on Monday released an advertisement that criticized Republican presidential nominee Sen. John McCain (Ariz.) for his views on health care and an article in which he discusses regulation of the health insurance market, the Boston Globe's "Political Intelligence" reports (Rhee, "Political Intelligence," Boston Globe, 9/22).

24 Sep 2008

Funding dispute affects plans to develop office of minority health in Cincinnati

The Cincinnati Enquirer on Sunday examined a dispute over funding to establish a local Office of Minority Health. In March, City Manager Milton Dohoney recommended that the Cincinnati City Council approve an ordinance that would have allowed the City of Cincinnati Health Department to apply for and accept a $69,023 grant from HHS to establish the center. He said the city would supply $17,489 in matching funds.

24 Sep 2008

House Democrats send letter to President Bush urging 'swift action' on reversal of rule banning HIV-positive foreigners from entering U.S.

Lawmakers and HIV advocates are urging the Bush administration to take action on reversing the current ban HIV-positive foreigners from entering the U.S., the AP/Los Angeles Times reports (Abrams, AP/Los Angeles Times, 9/20).

22 Sep 2008

Advisers to Presidential candidates discuss positions on reimportation, generics, biotechnology medications

Democratic presidential nominee Sen. Barack Obama (Ill.) and Republican presidential nominee Sen. John McCain (Ariz.) have begun "reviewing their support" for prescription drug reimportation in response to recent cases of contaminated medications and other products from other nations, advisers to the candidates said on Thursday during the annual conference of the Generic Pharmaceutical Association in Washington, D.C., Reuters/Boston Globe reports.

22 Sep 2008

Genetic screening effective for initial HIV treatment

A major study from a team of researchers from Weill Cornell Medical College and Massachusetts General Hospital has found that a recent change to HIV-treatment guidelines recommending genetic screening is cost-effective under certain conditions. The new recommendation suggests conducting a genetic screening test prior to prescribing the drug abacavir, one of the preferred first-line drugs for the treatment for HIV-infected adults.

17 Sep 2008

Minnesota lawmakers seek suspension of proposed Medicaid rule that would reduce Federal funding for MinnesotaCare

Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and Rep. Keith Ellison (D-Minn.) have introduced bills to suspend a proposed federal Medicaid rule that would reduce funding for the state's MinnesotaCare program and that potentially could cut up to 18,000 low- and middle-income beneficiaries from the program, the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports.

16 Sep 2008

Health and Human Services News and Research

2 million children with insured parents are uninsured in the U.S.

Contaminants in human milk

FDA grants tentative approval for 75th generic anti-retroviral drug

Protect yourself from flu by wearing a mask and washing your hands

Gardasil safety questioned, CDC urged to back up statement with data

Gene study sheds new light on lung cancer

Trius Therapeutics awarded $28 million to develop novel drugs targeting bacterial DNA Gyrase and Topoisomerase IV

Birth control has long term effect on hormone exposure

Cumulative spending on Medicaid benefits projected to reach $4.9 trillion over 10 years

Antiretroviral drug efavirenz associated with better outcomes in HIV-infected adults

Newspapers examine efforts, reaction to easing ban on HIV-positive visitors to U.S.

Senate Finance Committee leaders raise concerns about problems in Medicare appeals office

MedPAC hearing panelists call for residency programs to move away from hospital-centered care, toward treatment of chronic illnesses

HHS should act quickly to end travel restrictions for HIV-positive people, editorial says

Obama releases new ad criticizing McCain on health insurance regulation

Funding dispute affects plans to develop office of minority health in Cincinnati

House Democrats send letter to President Bush urging 'swift action' on reversal of rule banning HIV-positive foreigners from entering U.S.

Advisers to Presidential candidates discuss positions on reimportation, generics, biotechnology medications

Genetic screening effective for initial HIV treatment

Minnesota lawmakers seek suspension of proposed Medicaid rule that would reduce Federal funding for MinnesotaCare

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