Health and Human Services News and Research

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Government failed to disclose information about risks of formula-feeding because of political, economic reasons

The decision to halt an HHS public service campaign that promoted breast-feeding "seems to be a matter of politics and economics," Wendy Orent, author of the book "Plague: The Mysterious Past and Terrifying Future of the World's Most Dangerous Disease," writes in a Los Angeles Times opinion piece (Orent, Los Angeles Times, 9/30).

2 Oct 2007

Rubella elimination advancing in the Americas

The First Lady of the Dominican Republic, Dr. Margarita Cedeno de Fernandez, today urged the countries of the Americas to redouble their efforts to eliminate rubella and congenital rubella syndrome as well as all other vaccine-preventable diseases.

2 Oct 2007

Infectious Diseases Society of America strongly supports the STAAR Act

With extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis, life-threatening drug-resistant respiratory and skin infections, and other "bad bugs" routinely making headlines, infectious diseases physicians are applauding Rep. Jim Matheson (D-UT) and Rep. Michael Ferguson (R-NJ) for introducing H.R. 3697, the Strategies To Address Antimicrobial Resistance (STAAR) Act.

29 Sep 2007

Greater access to medical information under new law

Following the President's signature of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Amendments Act, HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt praised the bill as an important step forward in ensuring the safety of drugs and medical devices.

27 Sep 2007

Discovery of new pathway causing cell death related to frontotemporal dementia and ALS

Scientists have discovered a link between a mutated gene and a protein found in dead brain cells of people who suffer from a form of dementia and other neurological disorders.

27 Sep 2007

Top five prescribed drugs

With a total nearly $5 billion, Lipitor, a cholesterol-reducing drug, ranked first in terms of total spending on prescription medicines by adults ages 18 to 64 in 2004, and another cholesterol-fighting drug, Zocor, ranked fourth at $2.3 billion, according to the latest News and Numbers from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

21 Sep 2007

AHRQ and FDA to collaborate in ADHD study

Two U.S. Department of Health and Human Services agencies will collaborate in the most comprehensive study to date of prescription medications used to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and the potential for increased risk of heart attack, stroke or other cardiovascular problems.

21 Sep 2007

Largest study ever to look at possible heart risks with ADHD medications

18 Sep 2007

Benefits and risks of breastfeeding

Extensive medical research shows that mothers' milk satisfies babies' nutritional needs far better than any manufactured infant formula.

17 Sep 2007

Evista (raloxifene hydrochloride) approved for breast cancer

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Evista (raloxifene hydrochloride) for reducing the risk of invasive breast cancer in postmenopausal women with osteoporosis and in postmenopausal women at high risk for invasive breast cancer.

17 Sep 2007

Sanofi-aventis announces settlement of average wholesale price suits with DoJ relating to Anzemet

Sanofi-aventis announced today a civil settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice to resolve "Average Wholesale Price" (AWP) lawsuits under the federal False Claims Act relating to Anzemet(R) involving one of its predecessor companies, Aventis Pharmaceuticals Inc. (API).

11 Sep 2007

Muscadine grape skin extract shows promise for prostate cancer

Laboratory experiments show that an extract of the skin of muscadine grapes can inhibit growth of prostate cancer cells in the laboratory.

4 Sep 2007

Fruit flies have a taste for carbonated water

That fruit fly hovering over your kitchen counter may be attracted to more than the bananas that are going brown; it may also want a sip of your carbonated water.

4 Sep 2007

$75 million extra for pandemic flu preparedness

HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt has announced that the Department is making available another $75 million to states, territories and four metropolitan areas to help strengthen their capacity to respond to a pandemic influenza outbreak.

30 Aug 2007

Pycnogenol reduces perimenopausal symptoms

A study to be published in an upcoming edition of the Scandinavian Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology reveals that Pycnogenol (pic-noj-en-all), pine bark extract from the French maritime pine tree, reduces "climacteric symptoms" such as hot flashes, depression, panic attacks, cholesterol and other common symptoms associated with women entering menopause transition.

29 Aug 2007

FDA approves updated labeling for Warfarin (Coumadin)

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has announced the approval of updated labeling for the widely used blood-thinning drug, Coumadin, to explain that people's genetic makeup may influence how they respond to the drug.

17 Aug 2007

Baxter awarded major contract for flu vaccine in the event of a pandemic

Baxter International Inc. has announced that Baxter's European subsidiary in the United Kingdom has entered into an advanced supply agreement with the Department of Health that contains an option to purchase pandemic influenza vaccine in the event the World Health Organization (WHO) declares a pandemic.

From Baxter International Inc. 17 Aug 2007

$25 million made available for health care partnership emergency care competitive grants

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has announced that $25 million is available to hospitals and other health care facilities via a competitive emergency care grant program focused on hospital surge capacity, emergency care system capability, and community and hospital preparedness for public health emergencies.

13 Aug 2007

90 percent of seniors now have prescription drug coverage

More than 90 percent of Americans age 65 and older now have prescription drug coverage, compared to more than 75 percent who were covered in 2004, according to a University of Michigan analysis. And poor seniors are as likely to have coverage as the rich.

12 Aug 2007

U.S. stocks up again on bird flu vaccine

The Department of Health and Human Services in the United States has ordered more doses of the avian flu vaccine from the international pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline (GSK).

7 Aug 2007