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Tips for parents to help their kids get a smart start to the academic year

The first day of school always requires preparations -- notebooks, pens and a new set of clothes. But don't forget to prepare for your child's health, says Dr. Joan Bregstein, a physician in the Division of Pediatric Emergency Medicine at NewYork-Presbyterian/Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital.

30 Aug 2012

Guinea worm disease on verge of eradication, WHO reports

"The World Health Organization reports Guinea worm disease, which has plagued people for thousands of years, is on the verge of eradication," VOA News reports. "The U.N. agency says fewer than 400 cases of the infectious parasitic disease exist in four African countries, and that it will soon become only the second, after smallpox, to be wiped off the face of the earth," the news service writes.

30 Aug 2012

New book on medical screening to be launched on Sep. 4

Delegates from around the world will gather for the launch of a new book on medical screening edited by University of Leicester academics.

30 Aug 2012

Poll: Abortion not decisive issue for more than half of voters

While the 2012 presidential race has energized pro- and anti-abortion rights groups, a new CBS News poll shows that as many as 57 percent of registered voters in both parties say it's possible they would vote for a candidate who disagreed with them on the issue. However, women are less likely than men to say that.

30 Aug 2012

Full-term pregnancy benefits many U.S. babies

More U.S. babies are getting the benefit of a full-term pregnancy, according to a new government report that shows that 61 percent of births now happen at 39 weeks of pregnancy or later, a five percent increase between 2006 and 2010.

30 Aug 2012

Judge rewords Mo. health insurance exchange ballot measure

A judge has reworded a ballot measure that would require that state's governor to seek legislative or voter approval before establishing a health insurance exchange over charges that the secretary of state's ballot language was misleading.

30 Aug 2012

Residency cap may hamper efforts to expand number of doctors

Bloomberg examines the need for more primary care physicians and the limit on the number of slots for training doctors.

30 Aug 2012

Viewpoints: Clarity needed on GOP health plan; Blaming the poor

As soon as he moves into the White House, Mitt Romney promises, he will demand that Congress repeal the health care reform law that is President Barack Obama's signature achievement. Far less clear is how Romney and Republicans in Congress would replace the Affordable Care Act. That is a critical question for Florida, which has nearly 4 million uninsured residents and has failed to develop its own solution.

30 Aug 2012

UAB Center of Research Translation to improve health of patients with gout, hyperuricemia

The University of Alabama at Birmingham is establishing a Center of Research Translation to improve the health of an increasing number of patients with gout and hyperuricemia.

30 Aug 2012

Global guidance on bednet purchasing needed, analysis suggests

"According to analysis led by Kanika Bahl and Pooja Shaw of Results for Development's (R4D's) Market Dynamics team, improved global incentives and information on cost-effectiveness could save the fight against malaria up to $630 million over the next five years and encourage manufacturers to produce better-performing nets," Bahl, a managing director for R4D, and Shaw, a program officer in the Market Dynamics Practice at R4D, write in the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's "Impatient Optimists" blog.

30 Aug 2012

Georgia Governor rejects Medicaid expansion

Gov. Nathan Deal told reporters at the GOP convention that he has no intention of expanding the program because the federal government's commitment to pay the full cost for three years, and 90 percent thereafter "is probably unrealistic." An estimated 650,000 Georgians would gain health coverage under an expansion.

30 Aug 2012

Medicaid cuts hit dental services; Minn. seeks waiver to save $151 million

The New York Times looks at the problems that come when the health care program for low-income people doesn't meet their dental needs. At the same time, Minnesota news outlets report on an effort by the governor to get federal authorities to approve changes in the Medicaid program there.

30 Aug 2012

Foundation promises $500M for patient safety effort; Starts with $9M Hopkins grant

A foundation has promised to spend $500 million over the next decade on hospital safety to try to prevent patient harm. The first $9 million will fund a project at Johns Hopkins to develop tools to eliminate common threats in hospitals.

30 Aug 2012

India's contribution to global health R&D needs domestic, international support

As the BRIC countries -- Brazil, Russia, India, and China -- invest more in innovations in health technologies and other areas, "many are looking to these countries to correct the global health research and development (R&D) imbalance that leaves the poor without needed products such as an improved tuberculosis (TB) vaccine or tests to help diagnose patients in remote rural settings," David de Ferranti, president of Results for Development Institute (R4D), writes in the Huffington Post Blog.

30 Aug 2012

Cuban government says cholera outbreak that sickened 417, killed 3, has ended

"Cuba's government declared Tuesday that health workers had eradicated a cholera outbreak that infected 417 people and killed three, according to a statement from the country's Health Ministry," CNN reports.

30 Aug 2012

Hospital news: Low readmissions rates at 2 NYC hospitals; Parkland still facing crisis

Two New York City Health and Hospitals Corp. facilities are among the New York hospitals with the lowest rates of preventable readmissions. Hospitals face reductions in their Medicare rates starting in October, and 18 New York City hospitals will have the maximum penalty allowed under the federal health care reform law - 1% of their base Medicare reimbursement.

30 Aug 2012

Peruvian President announces launch of government fund to fight child malnutrition

Peruvian President Ollanta Humala on Monday said the country's central government and regional governments would provide $1.03 million to a fund aimed at reducing child malnutrition, Andean Air Mail & Peruvian Times reports.

30 Aug 2012

GOP platform calls for turning Medicare into voucher-like program, repealing Obamacare

The Republican Party's platform calls for a ban on all abortions, reshaping Medicare and deep cuts to Medicaid, if Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan are elected in November.

30 Aug 2012

Aidspan publishes new issue of 'Global Fund Observer'

Aidspan, an independent watchdog of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, on Monday published Issue 193 of its "Global Fund Observer."

30 Aug 2012

Global Fund Board approves 45 new two-year grants as part of Transitional Funding Mechanism

"The Board of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria has approved 45 new two-year grants, from 37 countries, totaling $419.2 million, to fund essential prevention, treatment, and care services provided to the people affected by the three diseases," according to a Global Fund press release.

30 Aug 2012