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Arkansas governor vetoes bill banning abortion after 20 weeks

The move by the Democratic governor sets up an override fight with a Republican legislature that wants the ban to apply except in cases of rape, incest or if the mother's life is in danger.

28 Feb 2013

Other governors pressured for and against Medicaid expansion

In North Carolina, lawmakers passed legislation barring the state from expanding the program for the poor, while in Pennsylvania, Kansas and West Virginia, supporters are pressing the economic and political advantages of the health law provision made optional by the Supreme Court.

28 Feb 2013

Youths addicted to alcohol and drugs can increase their chances of recovery by helping others

A Case Western Reserve University professor has found that young people addicted to alcohol and drugs can increase their chances of recovery by helping others.

28 Feb 2013

Friedreich's Ataxia costs between £11,000 and £19,000 per person per year

What is the cost of rare diseases such as Friedreich's Ataxia? By analyzing direct and indirect costs of care research in BioMed Central's open access journal Orphanet Journal of Rare Diseases calculated that conservatively this rare disease costs between £11,000 and £19,000 per person per year.

28 Feb 2013

IPS examines health implications of child marriage in Afghanistan

Inter Press Service examines the relationship between child marriage and the health of women and girls in Afghanistan. "In Afghanistan, the maternal mortality rate is on the rise; hospitals are filling up with anemic women and girls; and in over 200 districts, high schools are devoid of even a single female pupil," the news service writes, adding, "These issues are not unrelated -- they are all products of a grave social problem in this country of 35 million people: early child marriages."

28 Feb 2013

Demand exists for comfortable, visually appealing maternity wear for women earlier in pregnancies

Fashion retailers have seen an increase in demand for maternity wear in recent years, as sales for maternity clothing have increased while overall women's apparel sales have declined. Currently, most retailers produce maternity wear using a standardized size chart that begins with women in their seventh month of pregnancy. Retailers produce garments for women who are earlier in their terms by adjusting the sizes smaller proportionally based on the standardized chart.

28 Feb 2013

N.J.'s Christie joins ranks of GOP govs to opt to expand Medicaid

The decision by Gov. Chris Christie would provide health insurance to an estimated 104,000 of the poorest 1.3 million uninsured residents of the state. With this move, Christie follows other Republican governors who were staunch opponents of the health law, including Ohio's John Kasich and Florida's Rick Scott.

28 Feb 2013

CSIS report examines Global Health Policy in Second Obama Term

"I am pleased to share with you a new report and video series from the CSIS Global Health Policy Center, 'Global Health Policy in the Second Obama Term,'" J. Stephen Morrison, senior vice president of the Center for Strategic & International Studies (CSIS) and director of the CSIS Global Health Policy Center, writes in a letter posted on the center's "Smart Global Health" blog.

28 Feb 2013

Poll: Americans have mixed feelings about people with mental illness

In related news, a new study found that spending on mental health care has increased over the past five years.

28 Feb 2013

Sequester scare touches issues related to Medicare, Medicaid spending

The $85 billion in scheduled spending cuts to defense and discretionary accounts are scheduled to kick in Friday, and movement toward a last-ditch strategy has not been evident.

28 Feb 2013

State roundup: Health care industry calls drug testing bill in N.H. 'vague'

Representatives from the health care industry said Tuesday they have a vested interest in stopping employees from stealing controlled substances but a bill being considered by New Hampshire lawmakers to drug test their workers is too vague. The proposal is part of the legislative response to a recent scandal at Exeter Hospital, where an employee allegedly stole drugs and replaced them with Hepatitis C infected syringes later used on patients.

28 Feb 2013

UNAIDS, UNDP release issue brief on TRIPS transition period extensions for LDCs

"The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) today launched a new issue brief", titled "TRIPS transition period extensions for least-developed countries [LDCs]," a UNAIDS press release reports.

28 Feb 2013

New center to help Virginia patients and healthcare workers access specialists through telemedicine

To make it easier for residents of Southside Virginia and other rural localities to receive specialty care not readily available locally, a new state grant will help patients and healthcare workers access specialists through telemedicine.

28 Feb 2013

U.N. agencies appeal for additional assistance for food, health and education in Mali

"A top United Nations relief official who just returned from a trip to northern Mali said Tuesday that desperation, hunger and fear had pervaded the region in the year since Islamist militant extremists seized control, and that only $17 million of the organization's appeal for $373 million in emergency aid had been donated so far," the New York Times reports.

28 Feb 2013

House Ways and Means Committee chair says 'doc fix' is on his to-do list

And a Tuesday hearing of the House Ways and Means health subcommittee focused on options for finding cost savings in the traditional Medicare program.

28 Feb 2013

Medical Adhesives for Reusable or Disposable Medical Devices

An interview with Robert Michaels, discussing the major challenges faced by engineers designing medical devices and the development of new medical adhesives.

From Master Bond Inc. 28 Feb 2013

FSMB announces recipients of 2013 medical awards

The Federation of State Medical Boards (FSMB) announced the recipients of its 2013 awards recognizing outstanding service and leadership in the field of medical regulation.

28 Feb 2013

Genzyme marks 2013 International Rare Disease Day

Genzyme, a Sanofi company, today announced its support of International Rare Disease Day with a series of initiatives meant to call attention to rare diseases as an important public health issue and to improve rare disease education, research, and treatment.

28 Feb 2013

Wyss Founding Director receives NC3Rs 3Rs Prize for Lung-on-a-Chip

In a London ceremony today, Wyss Founding Director Don Ingber, M.D., Ph.D., received the NC3Rs 3Rs Prize from the UK's National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research (NC3Rs) for his innovative Lung-on-a-Chip -- a microdevice lined by human cells that recapitulates complex functions of the living lung.

28 Feb 2013

Efforts to copy biotech drugs face delays, obstacles

Much anticipated knockoff versions of costly biotech medicines are facing delays and obstacles that could cost patients and health systems billions in missed savings.

28 Feb 2013