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HIV prevention must include economic empowerment of women

"Transactional sex, sexual intercourse driven by material exchanges," occurs worldwide, but "[i]n poor regions with high HIV prevalence rates like sub-Saharan Africa … transactional sex poses an even higher threat to one's wellbeing and health because the chance of HIV infection is greater," Daniella Choi, staff member at the Center for Strategic & International Studies, writes in CSIS' Commission on Smart Global Health Policy blog.

12 Aug 2011

IRIN examines access to water and sanitation in Zambia

IRIN examines access to water and sanitation in Zambia, where "only 58 percent of Zambians have access to adequate sanitation and 13 percent lack any kind of toilet," according to a 2008 study by the local non-governmental organization Water and Sanitation Forum.

12 Aug 2011

Research roundup: Too many colonoscopies; N.C. health centers save money; Ankle injuries not necessarily emergencies

Overuse Of Screening Colonoscopy In The Medicare Population -- Medical experts traditionally recommend 10 years between normal colonoscopy screenings.

12 Aug 2011

Climate change to affect spread of malaria in India, study says

Over the next 20 years, "[c]limate change is likely to spread malaria to new areas in the Indian Himalayas, and lengthen the periods in which the infection is spread in a number of districts, according to projections [.pdf] from" researchers at the National Institute of Malaria Research (NIMR), Delhi, and published in a special issue of Current Science on Wednesday, SciDev.Net reports.

12 Aug 2011

HHS moves ahead to establish Affordable Insurance Exchanges

The Departments of Health and Human Services and Treasury today took the next steps to establish Affordable Insurance Exchanges - one-stop marketplaces where consumers can choose a private health insurance plan that fits their health needs and have the same kind of insurance choices as members of Congress.

12 Aug 2011

International community, especially China, must invest more in African agriculture and health

A drought and "security crisis as a result of political conflicts, civil war and anarchy" in Somalia are to blame for the famine recently declared by the U.N., but "[t]he international community is also to blame for responding too slowly and neglecting its responsibilities in this preventable disaster," a Lancet editorial says.

12 Aug 2011

GOP presidential candidates spar over health overhaul plans, individual mandate and more

Former Mass. Gov. Mitt Romney defended parts of the state's health overhaul he signed into law as the chief executive, while Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., and former Minn. Gov. Tim Pawlenty also exchanged health policy barbs.

12 Aug 2011

Viewpoints: Brownback's 'snub'; The 'risks' of Medicaid cuts; Congressional alums on debt talks

The governor's inability to stand up to pressure from his own party will slow progress. The rejected grant was also helping to fund information technology intended to make the state's Medicaid eligibility process more efficient and cost effective. Now that project also may be jeopardized (8/11).

12 Aug 2011

Sebelius talks health insurance exchanges

Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius took questions from PBS Newshour viewers about these new health insurance marketplaces that were envisioned in the health law. Also in the news, analysis of the recess appointment of Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Director Donald Berwick and more about what implementation activities are happening at the state level.

12 Aug 2011

GOP lawmaker wants health IT study to focus on errors

Rep. Renee Ellmers, R-N.C., wrote a letter to Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius requesting that the nation's push for electronic medical records include a study of the medical error rates associated with this technology.

12 Aug 2011

With panelists now in place, possible dynamics of a deal emerge

The special committee that will have to find $1.5 trillion in budget savings has a few members who will understand exactly what's at stake for Medicare and Medicaid. But others will only have a general idea — and it may be completely shaped by their political interests. Some of them won't have much of a health care background at all, but will have to get up to speed quickly.

12 Aug 2011

Boston health organizations plan merger

Partners HealthCare and Neighborhood Health Plan sign letter of intent for merger. In other hospital issues, Parkland Hospital In Dallas is in danger of losing Medicare accreditation and Conn. regulators are criticized.

12 Aug 2011

States slashing at least $4.7 billion from Medicaid plans

Reuters reports on a study of the state cuts by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. Also, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan is looking to expand its Medicaid business and a California study explores the high number of young people without insurance.

12 Aug 2011

Pelosi adds her picks to deficit reduction committee

With House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi's selections now made for the 'super committee,' the panel is complete. The next step: analyzing what positions they will bring to the negotiations and what the likelihood is that the group will strike a deal.

12 Aug 2011

High levels of BPA found in paper currencies

The cash register receipts that people place near paper money in billfolds, purses, and pockets has led to a worldwide contamination of paper money with bisphenol A (BPA) - a potentially toxic substance found in some plastics, thermal paper and other products.

12 Aug 2011

First Edition: August 12, 2011

Kaiser Health News' Mary Agnes Carey and Politico Pro's David Nather talk to Jackie Judd about the now complete "super committee" and what it may mean for Medicare and Medicaid.

12 Aug 2011

Study confirms ability of Tru-D device to decontaminate surfaces in patient rooms

In an original article coauthored by John M. Boyce, MD; Nancy L. Havill, MT; and Brent A. Moore, PhD, "Terminal Decontamination of Patient Rooms Using an Automated Mobile UV Light Unit", the research team from the Hospital of Saint Raphael and the Yale University School of Medicine ". . . demonstrated that an automated, portable UV light device significantly reduced aerobic colony counts on high-touch surfaces in patient rooms.

12 Aug 2011

Renewed focus on veterans' coverage gap

From the critical moments after she suffered a gunshot wound to the head in January to her triumphant return to Congress last week for a vote on the debt-limit deal, Rep. Gabrielle Giffords owes her recovery in no small part to veterans with similar injuries.

12 Aug 2011

WHO declares end to global swine flu pandemic

"The World Health Organization is declaring an end to the global swine flu pandemic," the Associated Press/Seattle Times reports.

12 Aug 2011

Experts troubled by global rise in c-section rates

Almost one-third of infants in the U.S. are delivered by caesarean section (c-section), a trend that is now growing globally, PRI's The World/PBS NewsHour reports. "The c-section rate in Thailand has reached 34 percent, in Vietnam, it is 36 percent, and in China, nearly half of all births are by c-section," the article states.

12 Aug 2011