Health and Human Services News and Research

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Haiti rebuilding assessment calls for health improvements; U.S., international donors continue long-term reconstruction efforts

"An assessment [for rebuilding Haiti after the January earthquake] prepared by foreign experts for the U.N. ... calls for a system that guarantees universal access to primary care, quality services and essential medication," the Wall Street Journal reports.

20 Mar 2010

National Native HIV/AIDS Awareness Day: NIAID Director issues statement

Following is a statement of Anthony S. Fauci, M.D., Director, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases National Institutes of Health on National Native HIV/AIDS Awareness Day, March 20, 2010:

19 Mar 2010

First Lady and HHS Secretary to announce new grants for supporting public health efforts

On Friday, First Lady Michelle Obama and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius will be joined by several high-ranking HHS officials to announce the release of new grants for communities to support public health efforts in preventing obesity and tobacco use while improving nutrition and increasing physical activity among the American people.

19 Mar 2010

Role of structured physical activity in preventing or delaying mobility disabilities in older adults

Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center, together with Wake Forest University, will play a key role in a new study that seeks to determine whether a program of structured physical activity can prevent or delay major mobility disabilities in older adults.

19 Mar 2010

Judicial Watch files lawsuit against HHS

Judicial Watch, the public interest group that investigates and prosecutes government corruption, announced today that it filed a lawsuit against the Obama Department of Health and Human Services to obtain documents related to President Obama's closed-door health care meetings with Vice President Biden, HHS Secretary Sebelius, Vice President Biden, Speaker Pelosi, Majority Leader Reid and union officials in violation of a campaign promise to broadcast all health care discussions on C-SPAN.

19 Mar 2010

EDP Biotech briefs Tennessee state legislators on ColoMarker colon cancer test

EDP Biotech, a Knoxville-based company today briefed Tennessee state legislators on its revolutionary ColoMarker™ colon cancer test which potentially could save 50,000 lives and more than $12 billion in healthcare costs annually in the U.S. Legislators were also provided the opportunity to personally experience the ColoMarker™ test by enrolling in the control study group for EDP’s latest research.

18 Mar 2010

HRSA survey shows RN workforce is becoming more diverse

The number of licensed registered nurses (RNs) in the United States grew to a new high of 3.1 million between 2004 and 2008 according to a report released today by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA).

18 Mar 2010

NIST and HHS to develop software tools to support health IT testing infrastructure

Fully incorporating modern information technology into the healthcare system promises many benefits, including better quality care, less paperwork and fewer medical errors while reducing unnecessary costs. In any such critical application, however, it's important to ensure that the new technology behaves as expected.

18 Mar 2010

HCRS selected to provide IT support services for three states

HealthCare Resolution Services, Inc. (HCRS), a leading provider of program integrity support, health information technology (IT) services and professional medical and technical staffing, announced today that it has been accepted as a subcontractor for three contract vehicles serving the states of Maryland, Texas, and Florida.

17 Mar 2010

Pew Prescription Project statement: Protect Americans from unsafe drugs made overseas

Two years after dozens of Americans lost their lives to contaminated heparin, we are still not able to protect U.S. consumers from many of the risks of pharmaceuticals manufactured in foreign factories. It is time for Congress to take action to better protect health.

17 Mar 2010

Bench to Bassinet Program aims to move lab results into clinical practice

To help speed the translation of scientific discoveries into usable treatments in congenital heart disease, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) of the National Institutes of Health launched the Bench to Bassinet Program.

17 Mar 2010

False Claims Act allegations over marketing of morphine-based drug Kadian: Alpharma to pay $42.5M

American pharmaceutical manufacturer Alpharma Inc. has agreed to pay $42.5 million to resolve False Claims Act allegations in connection with the marketing of the morphine-based drug, Kadian, the Justice Department announced today. The settlement resolves allegations that, between January 1, 2000 and December 29, 2008, Alpharma paid health care providers to induce them to promote or prescribe Kadian, and made misrepresentations about the safety and efficacy of the drug, which is used to treat chronic moderate to severe pain.

17 Mar 2010

CareTech Solutions signs five-year infrastructure outsourcing contract with Sibley Memorial Hospital

CareTech Solutions, Inc., (www.caretech.com) an information technology (IT) and Web products and services company servicing U.S. hospitals and health systems, announced today that it has signed a five-year, comprehensive infrastructure outsourcing contract with Sibley Memorial Hospital, a full-service, 328 bed nonprofit acute care community hospital serving the Washington, D.C. area.

16 Mar 2010

HealthyKidsMN.org Web site launched

The Minnesota Coalition for Kids Health Coverage today announced the launch of HealthyKidsMN.org, a statewide resource that aims to connect families with uninsured children to non-profit agencies that can assist them with eligibility requirements and enrollment into state-sponsored health care coverage options.

16 Mar 2010

MRSA Survivors Network urges CDC to declare MRSA an epidemic

MRSA Survivors Network, the nonprofit organization, along with other advocates, urgently plead with the CDC – (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), along with the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) to finally acknowledge the public health crisis to the public and take action.

16 Mar 2010

Banana lectin discovery may lead to potential new treatments for preventing sexual transmission of HIV

A potent new inhibitor of HIV, derived from bananas, may open the door to new treatments to prevent sexual transmission of HIV, according to a University of Michigan Medical School study published this week.

16 Mar 2010

Differences in brain's reward system may underlie vulnerability to psychopathy: Study

Normal individuals who scored high on a measure of impulsive/antisocial traits display a hypersensitive brain reward system, according to a brain imaging study by researchers at Vanderbilt University. The findings provide the first evidence of differences in the brain's reward system that may underlie vulnerability to what's typically referred to as psychopathy.

16 Mar 2010

HHS announces awards to help states facilitate health information exchange and advance health IT

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius today announced awards to help states facilitate health information exchange and advance health information technology (health IT). Funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, today’s awards are part of the $2 billion effort to achieve widespread meaningful use of health IT and provide use of an electronic health record by every citizen by the year 2014.

16 Mar 2010

Indiana receives $10.3M federal grant to enhance quality and reach of existing health information technology

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act's State Health Information Exchange Cooperative Agreement Program announced the award today of a four-year, $10.3 million grant to the State of Indiana to further enhance the quality and reach of the state's existing health information technology delivery system to improve health outcomes for Hoosiers and reduce costs across the continuum of health care.

16 Mar 2010

Metabolic drugs top the list of prescription drug expenses for elderly Medicare beneficiaries

Purchases of cholesterol and diabetes prescription drugs by elderly Medicare beneficiaries reached nearly $19 billion in 2007 - about one-fourth of the approximately $82 billion spent for medications for the elderly, according to the latest AHRQ News and Numbers.

16 Mar 2010

Health and Human Services News and Research

Haiti rebuilding assessment calls for health improvements; U.S., international donors continue long-term reconstruction efforts

National Native HIV/AIDS Awareness Day: NIAID Director issues statement

First Lady and HHS Secretary to announce new grants for supporting public health efforts

Role of structured physical activity in preventing or delaying mobility disabilities in older adults

Judicial Watch files lawsuit against HHS

EDP Biotech briefs Tennessee state legislators on ColoMarker colon cancer test

HRSA survey shows RN workforce is becoming more diverse

NIST and HHS to develop software tools to support health IT testing infrastructure

HCRS selected to provide IT support services for three states

Pew Prescription Project statement: Protect Americans from unsafe drugs made overseas

Bench to Bassinet Program aims to move lab results into clinical practice

False Claims Act allegations over marketing of morphine-based drug Kadian: Alpharma to pay $42.5M

CareTech Solutions signs five-year infrastructure outsourcing contract with Sibley Memorial Hospital

HealthyKidsMN.org Web site launched

MRSA Survivors Network urges CDC to declare MRSA an epidemic

Banana lectin discovery may lead to potential new treatments for preventing sexual transmission of HIV

Differences in brain's reward system may underlie vulnerability to psychopathy: Study

HHS announces awards to help states facilitate health information exchange and advance health IT

Indiana receives $10.3M federal grant to enhance quality and reach of existing health information technology

Metabolic drugs top the list of prescription drug expenses for elderly Medicare beneficiaries

Achieving and maintaining ISO 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

Examining how pain could play a direct protective role in the gut

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