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Rep. Frank says Obama's push for health law was 'mistake'

Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., said in a magazine interview that President Obama made a "mistake" pushing for health reform and that he urged Obama to take up financial system reform instead. In the meantime, Rep. Dennis Kucinich said a single-payer health care system is the only "obviously constitutional" health care plan.

18 Apr 2012

Washington Post examines research assessing public health benefits of clean cookstoves

"One of the most talked-about public-health initiatives is improving indoor air quality in the rural developing world," the Washington Post reports, noting "Over the past two years, the United States has pledged $105 million to fighting the cookstove problem."

18 Apr 2012

Streamlining federal restrictions on low-risk clinical comparative effectiveness research

In an opinion article published in this week's theme edition of the Journal of the American Medical Association focusing on comparative effectiveness research, a team of Johns Hopkins University bioethicists argues forcefully for streamlining federal restrictions on at least some low-risk clinical comparative effectiveness research, instead of easing them - as is now proposed - solely for low-risk social and behavior research involving surveys, interviews and focus groups.

18 Apr 2012

Lawyers eye Disability Act for lawsuit opportunities

A small cadre of lawyers, some from out of state, are using New York City's age and architectural quirkiness as the foundation for a flood of lawsuits citing violations of the Americans With Disabilities Act. The lawyers are generally not acting on existing complaints from people with disabilities.

18 Apr 2012

New report on child health, education shows development aid's effectiveness

"In an age of austerity, when everyone is feeling the pinch, some question whether we should continue giving aid to poor countries," Justin Forsyth, CEO of Save the Children U.K., writes in a Telegraph opinion piece.

18 Apr 2012

USP convenes pharmaceutical supply chain integrity workshop

The increasing globalization of the drug supply presents a host of public health challenges: theft and diversion of medicines, growth of illegal Internet pharmacies and insertion of adulterated medicines or ingredients into the supply chain.

18 Apr 2012

Roundup: Texas spends $1.25M fighting federal government; Minn. doctor training money slashed; Kan. seeks to cut nursing home population

News outlets report on a variety of health policy issues in Texas, Minnesota, Georgia, Kansas, Massachusetts, Ohio, Florida and Pennsylvania.

18 Apr 2012

World Bank selects U.S. nominee Jim Kim as president

"The World Bank on Monday chose Korean-born American health expert Jim Yong Kim as its new president, maintaining Washington's grip on the job and leaving developing countries frustrated with the selection process," Reuters reports (Wroughton, 4/16).

18 Apr 2012

EAPs fail to identify individuals who abuse their intimate partner

A new study by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Center for Injury Research and Policy and RTI International finds employee assistance programs (EAPs), a standard benefit offered to employees at most large companies, are failing to identify individuals who abuse or have the potential to abuse their intimate partner, despite well-known risk factors for intimate partner violence perpetration.

18 Apr 2012

Mississippi Gov. signs landmark anti-abortion law, other states restricting contraception, abortion access

The state's new law could effectively close the state's only clinic. Meanwhile, a law in Idaho designed to limit abortions is being challenged.

18 Apr 2012

Nigerian Vaccine Summit an opportunity to translate political will into action

In this post in the Huffington Post Blog, Orin Levine, executive director of the International Vaccine Access Center (IVAC), reports on the Nigerian Vaccine Summit, where Nigeria's leaders will meet this week to discuss children's health in the country.

18 Apr 2012

Lime juice and solar disinfection improve quality of drinking water

Looking for an inexpensive and effective way to quickly improve the quality of your drinking water? According to a team of researchers from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, sunlight and a twist of lime might do the trick.

18 Apr 2012

Medical societies bracing for Medicare penalties

After earning hundreds of millions of dollars through Medicare incentive programs designed to improve the quality of care and hold down costs, the medical profession now worries about the flip side of bonuses - financial penalties from all angles.

18 Apr 2012

State insurance exchange implementation faces challenges

In some places, state-level progress in building the law's insurance exchanges appears to be stalling because of political divisions.

18 Apr 2012

New text on nursing of autism spectrum disorder

The growing number of children and adults on the autism spectrum represent a growing need for quality health care that is sensitive to the issues they face. This is the premise and challenge behind a new text, Nursing of Autism Spectrum Disorder: Evidence-based Integrated Care across the Lifespan (Springer, April 2012), edited by Dr. Ellen Giarelli, an associate professor in Drexel's College of Nursing and Health Professions, with Dr. Marcia Gardner.

18 Apr 2012

Federal officials use health law to cite two insurers for excessive premium increases

The insurance companies will be able to charge the higher amount, but they will be required to disclose on websites that reviewers found the rates to be unreasonable and explain why they are still imposing them.

18 Apr 2012

FDA's three draft guidances on biosimilars - BIO submits comments

The Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) submitted comments yesterday to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on three draft guidance documents on biosimilar products.

18 Apr 2012

MD Anderson develops series of food plate worksheets on nutrition and cancer prevention

As part of National Minority Cancer Awareness Week during April 15 to 21, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center has developed a series of food plate worksheets that focus on nutrition and cancer prevention for African American, Hispanic and Vietnamese audiences.

18 Apr 2012

Medical journals facing raft of ethical, transparency challenges

The New York Times, Connecticut Mirror and MedPage Today examine how prominent journals are handling questions about their independence or integrity.

18 Apr 2012

U.S. Chamber of Commerce finds small business owners wary of health law regs

The survey finds that the regulations rank at the top of small business owners' concerns. In other news, the National Journal examines the future of accountable care organizations.

18 Apr 2012