Health and Human Services News and Research

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Skeptics question health overhaul savings, cost-controls

USA Today reports that independent analysts are increasingly questioning whether the long-term savings promised in the health care bills being considered by Congress are realistic.

12 Jan 2010

Women with high BP face greater risk for dementia later in life

High blood pressure may put women at greater risk for dementia later in life by increasing white matter abnormalities in the brain, report researchers from the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health in a study published online in the Journal of Clinical Hypertension.

12 Jan 2010

HGS reports commercialization of late-stage products for systemic lupus and chronic hepatitis C

Human Genome Sciences, Inc. today will announce its priority goals for 2010 and report on the Company’s increasing momentum toward commercialization of late-stage products for systemic lupus and chronic hepatitis C in a presentation by H. Thomas Watkins, President and Chief Executive Officer, to financial analysts and investors at the 28th Annual JPMorgan Healthcare Conference in San Francisco.

12 Jan 2010

U.S. physicians can receive interest-free loan from Ingenix to license and implement CareTracker EHR

Ingenix today introduced a package that includes interest-free financing, health information technology (HIT) services and performance guarantees to help physicians integrate HIT into their practices.

12 Jan 2010

American Heart Association encourages more Americans to get vaccinated against H1N1

The American Heart Association supports National Influenza Vaccination Week, Jan. 10-16, an effort led by the Department of Health and Human Services and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to encourage more Americans to get vaccinated against H1N1.

12 Jan 2010

CVS/pharmacy and MinuteClinic urge Americans to protect themselves with H1N1 vaccine

CVS/pharmacy, the nation's leading retail pharmacy and MinuteClinic, the largest retail health care provider in the U.S., is urging more Americans to protect themselves and their families with an H1N1 vaccine during National Influenza Vaccination Week (January 10-16) as designated by U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

12 Jan 2010

AHF to host protest targeting Merck over the steep price for its key HIV/AIDS drug, Isentress

AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) will host a protest Tuesday, January 12, at 10:30am targeting Merck and Co. Pharmaceuticals over the steep price for its key HIV/AIDS drug, Isentress, during the 28th Annual J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference in San Francisco.

12 Jan 2010

Public awareness campaign needed to curb health threats posed by hepatitis B and hepatitis C

Stepped-up vaccination requirements, a boost in resources for prevention and treatment, and a public awareness campaign similar to the effort that dispelled the stigma of HIV/AIDS are needed to curb the health threats posed by hepatitis B and hepatitis C, says a new report from the Institute of Medicine.

12 Jan 2010

Calif. Gov. Schwarzenegger plans health cuts; news outlets report on Medicaid funding issues

California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is planning cuts to health programs and has "warned more would come if the federal government does not increase program reimbursements," ModernHealthcare reports. "His $82.9 billion spending plan for fiscal 2010-11 includes $750 million in cuts to Medi-Cal, the state's Medicaid program. Prison medical care would be cut by $811 million under his plan." Schwarzenegger is seeking $1.8 billion more in Medicaid funds by raising California's match to the national average for the program — 57 percent (Vesely, 1/8).

12 Jan 2010

Allscripts introduces Allscripts Stimulus Program for physicians

Allscripts today introduced the Allscripts Stimulus Program, making it safe and easy for physicians to purchase and rapidly deploy Electronic Health Records that will qualify for significant federal incentives.

11 Jan 2010

Researchers identify treatment to reduce health problems associated with enzyme defect

An experimental compound repaired a defective alcohol metabolism enzyme that affects an estimated 1 billion people worldwide, according to research supported by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA).

10 Jan 2010

Americans encouraged to get H1N1 flu vaccine during National Influenza Vaccination Week

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and its Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced a nationwide effort to encourage more Americans to get the H1N1 flu vaccine during National Influenza Vaccination Week, January 10–16, 2010.

9 Jan 2010

Illicit drug use among older adults may lead to increase in substance abuse treatment services

A new study done by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) indicates that the aging of the baby boom generation is resulting in a dramatic increase in levels of illicit drug use among adults 50 and older. These increases may require the doubling of substance abuse treatment services needed for this population by 2020, according to the report.

9 Jan 2010

White House rallies Democratic governors around health reform

Politico: "One day after California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, a Republican, delivered a stinging attack on federal health care reform, Obama administration officials huddled with his Democratic counterparts to address their complaints about the legislation — and enlist them in the public campaign to support it.

8 Jan 2010

About 3 million lose health coverage in California

About 3 million poor Californians lost health benefits or access to health care, and thousands more lost their jobs due to state budget cuts imposed six months ago, according to a report released Thursday.

8 Jan 2010

Medicare documentation requirements for power wheelchairs must be improved, federal report

A federal report released last week on Medicare claims for power wheelchairs confirms that the regulatory documentation requirements are confusing, onerous, and must be improved, says the American Association for Homecare, the nation's largest association representing providers of durable medical equipment and services, including wheelchairs.

8 Jan 2010

Researchers identify key epigenetic mechanism that helps explain cocaine's addictiveness

Researchers have identified a key epigenetic mechanism in the brain that helps explain cocaine's addictiveness, according to research funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), part of the National Institutes of Health.

8 Jan 2010

CFIDS Association of America issues statement in response to XMRV study

The CFIDS Association of America issued the following statement in response to a study published in today’s edition of PLoS One that failed to detect the XMRV virus in banked samples drawn from 186 CFS patients in the United Kingdom. A study published Oct. 8, 2009 in Science reported that 68 of 101 CFS patients from clinics in the U.S. tested positive for XMRV.

7 Jan 2010

Virginia elementary school children will receive their second dose of H1N1 vaccine

On Thursday, January 7, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, Secretary of Education Arne Duncan and the U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Regina Benjamin will visit a school-based flu vaccination clinic at Carlin Springs Elementary in Arlington, Virginia, where local elementary schoolchildren will receive their second dose of the H1N1 vaccine.

7 Jan 2010

Health-IT experts discuss privacy and security requirements of computerized PHRs at upcoming forum

A key cornerstone of President Obama’s health-care reform efforts is a national web of computerized Personal Health Records (PHRs), provided by a burgeoning industry of health-IT providers such as Google, Microsoft and IBM. But before this industry can be fully built out, health providers, technologists, and legislators need to agree on a slew of privacy and security safeguards and standards.

7 Jan 2010

Health and Human Services News and Research

Skeptics question health overhaul savings, cost-controls

Women with high BP face greater risk for dementia later in life

HGS reports commercialization of late-stage products for systemic lupus and chronic hepatitis C

U.S. physicians can receive interest-free loan from Ingenix to license and implement CareTracker EHR

American Heart Association encourages more Americans to get vaccinated against H1N1

CVS/pharmacy and MinuteClinic urge Americans to protect themselves with H1N1 vaccine

AHF to host protest targeting Merck over the steep price for its key HIV/AIDS drug, Isentress

Public awareness campaign needed to curb health threats posed by hepatitis B and hepatitis C

Calif. Gov. Schwarzenegger plans health cuts; news outlets report on Medicaid funding issues

Allscripts introduces Allscripts Stimulus Program for physicians

Researchers identify treatment to reduce health problems associated with enzyme defect

Americans encouraged to get H1N1 flu vaccine during National Influenza Vaccination Week

Illicit drug use among older adults may lead to increase in substance abuse treatment services

White House rallies Democratic governors around health reform

About 3 million lose health coverage in California

Medicare documentation requirements for power wheelchairs must be improved, federal report

Researchers identify key epigenetic mechanism that helps explain cocaine's addictiveness

CFIDS Association of America issues statement in response to XMRV study

Virginia elementary school children will receive their second dose of H1N1 vaccine

Health-IT experts discuss privacy and security requirements of computerized PHRs at upcoming forum

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 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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