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UAB School of Nursing raising bar on service for veterans

Partnering with Birmingham's VA Medical Center and with colleagues across a wide range of health care professions, the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Nursing is raising the bar on service for veterans and their families.

3 Apr 2013

Gynecomastia affects mental, emotional health in adolescent males, study finds

Persistent breast enlargement (gynecomastia) negatively affects self-esteem and other areas of mental and emotional health in adolescent males, reports the April issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, the official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons.

3 Apr 2013

U.S. agencies supporting fight against HIV/AIDS in Malawi

"U.S. agencies that work to fight HIV this week began a five-year effort with Malawi's government to improve health care for Malawians infected with the virus," VOA News reports.

3 Apr 2013

Study finds high mortality rates in rural hospitals

In an analysis that included data on more than 10 million Medicare beneficiaries admitted to acute care hospitals with a heart attack, congestive heart failure, or pneumonia between 2002 and 2010, 30-day mortality rates for those admitted to critical access hospitals (designated hospitals that provide inpatient care to individuals living in rural communities) increased during this time period compared with patients admitted to other acute care hospitals, according to a study in the April 3 issue of JAMA.

3 Apr 2013

NTDs have 'devastating consequences' for 1 out of 6 people worldwide

"There are so many things we take for granted in America. One of them is that our children are not regularly infected by one of the tropical diseases so common among the world's poorest people," Richard Besser, ABC News' chief health and medical editor, writes in an ABC News opinion piece.

3 Apr 2013

More information needed about new strain of bird flu in China

In a Foreign Policy opinion piece, Laurie Garrett, senior fellow for global health at the Council on Foreign Relations, recounts recent events in China, including the discovery of hundreds of dead pigs, ducks, and geese in rivers and the diagnosis of several human cases of a new strain of avian influenza, H7N9, and she writes, "[T]his could be how pandemics begin."

3 Apr 2013

New Jersey bans minors under age of 17 years old from using indoor tanning salons

New Jersey sent a strong message to young people that indoor tanning salons can be dangerous to their health. New Jersey has passed a law that bans minors under the age of 17 years old from using indoor tanning devices.

3 Apr 2013

Vermont first in parade of states to publish premium costs

The state is the first to publish proposed 2014 individual health insurance rates under the federal health law.

3 Apr 2013

Viewpoints: Actuaries report validates critics' skepticism of law; Campaign to repeal medical devices tax is paying off

The non-partisan Society of Actuaries last week said that because of Obamacare, insurers could pay an average of 32% more for medical claims. Those costs will be passed onto those who buy insurance on the individual market in the form of dramatically higher premiums.

3 Apr 2013

Depression levels significantly higher in current college athletes, survey finds

A survey of current and former college athletes finds depression levels significantly higher in current athletes, a result that upended the researchers' hypothesis.

3 Apr 2013

Senate races: Health law divides candidates in Mass., Ga.

In the Massachusetts special election for former Sen. John Kerry's seat, only one candidate is campaigning as a supporter of the 2010 health law.

3 Apr 2013

New device to improve patients' hearing

Around 17 million people in Germany suffer from impaired hearing. For many of them, their hearing is so damaged that a standard hearing aid is no longer enough.

3 Apr 2013

Peace Corps volunteer plans to change others' lives

The two years Andrea Torre spent in Dimbwe Village in southern Zambia changed her life. Now she has come to the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Nursing to learn the skills she needs to spend the rest of her career helping to change others' lives.

3 Apr 2013

NIH awards funding to two recipients of Autism Centers of Excellence program

The National Institutes of Health has awarded $5.3 million in initial one-year funding to the latest two recipients of the Autism Centers of Excellence program. With these awards, announced on World Autism Awareness Day, these and nine other ACE centers around the country are now being funded for up to five years.

3 Apr 2013

Roundup: Feds cut N.Y. Medicaid payments $1.2B; 93,000 fewer kids enroll in CHIP in Pa.; W. Va. lawmakers promise miners benefits

Federal authorities have dramatically lowered the amount that New York state can claim from the federal government for certain medical services, costing the state an estimated $1.2 billion.

3 Apr 2013

North Dakota abortion clinic pledges to fight new state law

North Dakota's only clinic that offers abortion services is vowing to challenge the state's adoption of new restrictions that its backers say imperil its ability to operate.

3 Apr 2013

Survey: Children, teens across U.S. have extremely limited access to mental health care services

Everyday, news reports detail the impact of the deficiencies in the nation's mental health care services. Even more startling, a survey from the University of Michigan reveals that many adults across the U.S. believe children and teens have extremely limited or no access to appropriate mental health care services.

3 Apr 2013

Legislation proposed to help vets wrongly denied benefits

Two Minnesota lawmakers are pushing a bill to help veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder who may have been discharged from the military after being diagnosed inaccurately.

3 Apr 2013

Eating right can help prevent cancer

This year, half a million Americans will lose their lives to cancer, and more than 1.6 million men and women will be diagnosed with the illness. During Cancer Control Month, the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics reminds Americans that eating right can help you prevent cancer and even support your treatment if you've already been diagnosed.

3 Apr 2013