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U.S. Secretary Kathleen Sebelius to participate in a vaccination exercise on the anniversary of 9/11

On the anniversary of 9/11, U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius and Assistant Secretary for Health Howard Koh will honor the members of the Medical Reserve Corps and participate in a vaccination exercise in Alexandria, Va., on Friday, September 11, 2009.

11 Sep 2009

HHS Secretary to issue new report on the employer-sponsored insurance market

HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius today will address the University of Chicago’s dialogue on health care reform and education and issue a new report on the employer-sponsored insurance market.

11 Sep 2009

Long-term care insurance bill finds support from industry leader

Today Jonas Roeser, a long-term care industry leader, declared his support for H.R. 1891, a House bill to make long-term care insurance more affordable through a 50% tax deduction. Roeser is Senior Vice President of Marketing and Operations for LTC Financial Partners LLC (LTCFP) -- http://www.ltcfp.com -- one of the nation's largest and most experienced long-term care insurance agencies.

11 Sep 2009

HHS, Ad Council and Warner Bros unite to address childhood obesity

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Ad Council today launched a new series of public service advertisements (PSAs) designed to address childhood overweight and obesity.

11 Sep 2009

Proposal calls for Medicare coverage of HIV screening

A new government proposal calls for Medicare beneficiaries to receive coverage for Human Immunodeficiency Virus infection screening.

11 Sep 2009

Gastroenterologists applaud President's call for screening tests coverage

Gastrointestinal specialists from the American College of Gastroenterology applaud President Obama's call to cover preventive screening tests, such as breast cancer exams and colonoscopy. In his health care speech to a joint session of Congress last night, the President argued that "there's no reason we shouldn't be catching diseases like breast cancer and colon cancer before they get worse. That makes sense."

11 Sep 2009

U.S. public health officials recommend early flu vaccination

With increased influenza activity anticipated this fall, U.S. public health officials and other leading medical experts today urged Americans to be vigilant and get immunized early for protection against seasonal influenza - a threat to Americans' health each and every year.

10 Sep 2009

U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform calls for meaningful medical liability reforms

Statement of Lisa A. Rickard, president of the U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform, on reports from White House press secretary Robert Gibbs that President Obama will address medical liability reform in tonight's speech to Congress:

10 Sep 2009

President Obama’s health care address to Congress broadcasted

Today, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius released a radio actuality previewing President Obama’s health care address to Congress on Wednesday evening. Radio stations and Web sites wishing to download the audio for broadcast can find it on the www.healthreform.gov Web site.

10 Sep 2009

Business operations to be hit in the event of H1N1 outbreak

In a national survey of businesses that looks at their preparations for a possible widespread H1N1 outbreak, Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) researchers found that only one-third believe they could sustain their business without severe operational problems if half their workforce were absent for two weeks due to H1N1 (also known as "swine flu").

10 Sep 2009

'How Much Longer' campaign for promoting autism awareness

The National Autism Association (NAA) declared today as National "How Much Longer" Day for Autism, a day of letter-writing to the media, health agencies, Department of Education, lawmakers and the Obama Administration asking for such things as health insurance coverage, federal laws to protect special-ed students from dangerous restraint and seclusion practices in schools, safer vaccines, and for autism to be declared a nation health crisis.

10 Sep 2009

80 percent residents aware of family building options: RESOLVE survey

According to a recent survey conducted by RESOLVE: The National Infertility Association (RESOLVE), Washington, D.C. metro-area residents are highly aware of various family building options due to a patient’s infertility diagnosis, such as medical treatment, adoption and surrogacy.

10 Sep 2009

E.V-Trax Employee Vaccination Tracking System helps eliminate manual data entry

General Data Company, Inc., which specializes in barcode-based error-proofing and tracking system solutions, is offering a new mobile application to help healthcare organizations administer employee vaccinations and track the immunization status of their personnel for H1N1, influenza, and other vaccinations.

10 Sep 2009

First trial of 2009 H1N1 influenza vaccine testing launched

The first trial testing a candidate 2009 H1N1 influenza vaccine in pregnant women is launching this week, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health, announced today.

10 Sep 2009

New website launched on food safety

Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius and Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack, the co-chairs of the Obama Administration’s Food Safety Working Group, unveiled a new consumer Web site today at www.foodsafety.gov. The site is designed to help consumers and families get all the latest information on food safety and food recalls in one convenient place.

10 Sep 2009

Health care reform should make system efficient for patients and physicians: AMA

"It is clear that the status quo is unacceptable. The AMA will continue to work for reform that makes the system work better for patients and physicians. We must seize this opportunity this year to achieve meaningful health reform for America's patients and physicians.

9 Sep 2009

Cepheid's Flu Panel test to provide 45-minute identification of Flu A infection

Cepheid (Nasdaq: CPHD) today announced the accelerated development of a Flu A (Influenza Virus) Panel test for use on the GeneXpert((R)) System. The test will be designed to provide 45-minute identification of Flu A infection, with specific presumptive identification of seasonal H1, seasonal H3, and H1N1 novel strain types.

9 Sep 2009

Campaign launched to tackle childhood obesity

Urging children to get at least 60 minutes of physical activity each day, Pennsylvania Health Secretary Everette James and Education Secretary Gerald Zahorchak today helped to kick off the NFL Play 60 national youth health and fitness campaign.

9 Sep 2009

Vangent forges alliance with MSM in Atlanta to provide job opportunities for MPH degree students

Vangent, Inc., a leading global provider of information management and strategic business process outsourcing solutions, announced it has partnered with the Morehouse School of Medicine (MSM) in Atlanta, GA to provide job opportunities for some of Morehouse's second year graduate students pursuing a Master of Public Health (MPH) degree.

9 Sep 2009

Nutrisystem D program helps overweight type 2 diabetic people lose weight

Results from a clinical study conducted at the Temple University School of Medicine and published today in the journal Postgraduate Medicine(1), show that a pre-packaged, portion controlled meal plan helped overweight individuals with type 2 diabetes lose significantly more weight and reduce their A1C test scores (a 90-day measure of blood sugar control) by almost a full point greater than those following a standard hospital-based diabetes support and education program, according to the findings.

9 Sep 2009