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Sebelius, DeParle discuss health care reform with congressional lawmakers

Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius (D), President Obama's nominee for HHS secretary, and Nancy-Ann DeParle, the director of the White House Office for Health Reform, each met with congressional lawmakers on Tuesday to discuss plans for health care overhaul, CQ Today reports. Sebelius said she met with nearly 40 senators who expressed "a lot of interest in health reform."

25 Mar 2009

Speakers at White House-sponsored forum discuss possibility of public health coverage option, preventive care

Congressional Democrats intend to pass health care reform legislation by "August or September" that could include an option allowing uninsured U.S. residents to buy into a government-run health care plan, Senate Appropriations Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies Subcommittee Chair Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) said on Monday, Kansas Health Institute News reports.

24 Mar 2009

U.S. health reform should not be modeled on Massachusetts health insurance law, according to report

Efforts to overhaul the U.S. health care system should not be modeled after the 2006 Massachusetts health insurance law because the law does not include cost controls, according to a report released on Tuesday by researchers at the Institute for America's Future, the Boston Herald reports.

23 Mar 2009

HHS names former Harvard Professor Blumenthal as National Health Care Information Technology Coordinator

HHS on Friday announced the appointment of former Harvard Medical School professor David Blumenthal as the national coordinator for health care information technology, the AP/Philadelphia Inquirer reports.

23 Mar 2009

HHS names panel of experts to advise government on spending for comparative effectiveness research

HHS on Thursday named 15 members to a panel that will advise the government on how to spend the $1.1 billion in federal stimulus funding dedicated to comparing the effectiveness of medical treatments, Reuters/Boston Globe reports.

23 Mar 2009

Sen. Grassley says compromise on public-private option health care system will be difficult

Senate Finance Committee ranking member Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) on Thursday at the Kaiser Family Foundation told reporters that although congressional Democrats and Republicans likely will not reach an agreement on health care reform legislation with a provision that would establish a public health plan to compete with private plans, he could not dismiss the possibility, the Wall Street Journal reports (Yoest, Wall Street Journal, 3/19).

23 Mar 2009

Kansas House Committee approves bill that would require HIV testing among pregnant women

The Kansas House Committee on Health and Human Services last week approved a bill (S.B. 147) that would require doctors to test pregnant women and some infants for HIV, the Kansas Health Institute News reports.

23 Mar 2009

Exercise therapy benefits ICU patients

An exercise program developed at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center aimed at helping patients in the medical Intensive Care Unit (ICU) maintain physical conditioning is a featured 'Innovation Profile' on the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) Web site.

23 Mar 2009

Discovery of new mechanism for the processing of endocannabinoids

New research funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), part of the National Institutes of Health, has identified a new mechanism for the processing of endocannabinoids, natural brain compounds similar to THC, the active ingredient in marijuana.

17 Mar 2009

Obama nominates former New York City health chief Hamburg as FDA commissioner, Baltimore Health Commissioner Sharfstein as Deputy

President Obama in his weekly radio and Internet address on Saturday said that he would nominate former New York City Health Commissioner Margaret Hamburg as FDA commissioner and Baltimore Health Commissioner Joshua Sharfstein as the agency's principal deputy commissioner, the New York Times reports (Harris, New York Times, 3/15).

16 Mar 2009

New HHS grant will allow Pennsylvania HIV, STI education program to continue

The Community Prevention Partnership of Berks County, Pa. -- which runs a program that provides Hispanic women with education about HIV and sexually transmitted infection prevention, as well as domestic violence -- has received a five-year, $335,000 grant from HHS to continue the program, the Reading Eagle reports.

16 Mar 2009

SOX9 protein may be a potential target for melanoma treatment

In a new study released today, researchers have shown that a specific protein plays an important role in inhibiting the development and spread of melanoma tumors in mouse and in human skin models.

11 Mar 2009

Kansas lawmakers to examine increase in payments to group with ties to HHS Secretary-Designee Sebelius

Kansas lawmakers on Wednesday announced that they plan to hold hearings to examine a decision made by the administration of Gov. Kathleen Sebelius (D), whom President Obama has nominated as HHS secretary, to increase state payments to a social services group whose board of directors included members with close ties to the governor, the AP/Kansas City Star reports.

5 Mar 2009

Combination of genes and prenatal exposure to smoking increases teens' risk of disruptive behavior

A study funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse, a component of the National Institutes of Health, shows that prenatal exposure to smoking combined with a specific genetic variant places children at greatest risk for behavioral problems.

5 Mar 2009

Texas Senate Committee approves bill to protect needle-exchange programs

The Texas Senate's Health and Human Services Committee on Tuesday voted 5-1 to approve a bill (S.B. 188) that would protect needle-exchange programs run by local health departments, the AP/Houston Chronicle reports.

4 Mar 2009

Federal health officials, prosecutors switch focus to physicians in illegal kickback cases

Federal health officials and prosecutors have begun to investigate physicians who receive money from drug and medical device makers for using their products, in an attempt to halt the illegal kickbacks, the New York Times reports.

4 Mar 2009

Molecule provides clues about how HPV may lead to cancer

New research shows for the first time that certain types of human papillomavirus (HPV), which cause cervical and some other types of cancer, can inhibit the production of a tiny single-stranded RNA called microRNA 34a, or miR-34a.

4 Mar 2009

United States files complaint against Forest Labs for allegedly violating the false claims act with Celexa and Lexapro

A Complaint was unsealed today in U.S. District Court in Massachusetts against a New York pharmaceutical company for alleged False Claims Act violations arising from the company's marketing the drugs Celexa and Lexapro for unapproved pediatric use and for paying kickbacks to induce physicians to prescribe the drugs.

25 Feb 2009

Scientists identify lab-made proteins that neutralize a broad range of influenza A viruses

Scientists have identified a small family of lab-made proteins that neutralize a broad range of influenza A viruses, including the H5N1 avian virus, the 1918 pandemic influenza virus and seasonal H1N1 flu viruses.

23 Feb 2009

Experts say multivitamins have no impact on older women's risk of cancer or heart disease

A study by scientists in the United States has found that the long-term use of multivitamins have no impact on a postmenopausal woman's risk of cancer or heart disease.

10 Feb 2009

Health and Human Services News and Research

Sebelius, DeParle discuss health care reform with congressional lawmakers

Speakers at White House-sponsored forum discuss possibility of public health coverage option, preventive care

U.S. health reform should not be modeled on Massachusetts health insurance law, according to report

HHS names former Harvard Professor Blumenthal as National Health Care Information Technology Coordinator

HHS names panel of experts to advise government on spending for comparative effectiveness research

Sen. Grassley says compromise on public-private option health care system will be difficult

Kansas House Committee approves bill that would require HIV testing among pregnant women

Exercise therapy benefits ICU patients

Discovery of new mechanism for the processing of endocannabinoids

Obama nominates former New York City health chief Hamburg as FDA commissioner, Baltimore Health Commissioner Sharfstein as Deputy

New HHS grant will allow Pennsylvania HIV, STI education program to continue

SOX9 protein may be a potential target for melanoma treatment

Kansas lawmakers to examine increase in payments to group with ties to HHS Secretary-Designee Sebelius

Combination of genes and prenatal exposure to smoking increases teens' risk of disruptive behavior

Texas Senate Committee approves bill to protect needle-exchange programs

Federal health officials, prosecutors switch focus to physicians in illegal kickback cases

Molecule provides clues about how HPV may lead to cancer

United States files complaint against Forest Labs for allegedly violating the false claims act with Celexa and Lexapro

Scientists identify lab-made proteins that neutralize a broad range of influenza A viruses

Experts say multivitamins have no impact on older women's risk of cancer or heart disease

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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