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Study: 19.5% of high school student smokers do not smoke daily or frequently

A new study found that of the 19.5 percent of high school students who call themselves smokers, most don't smoke daily or frequently. Between 1991 and 2009, heavy smoking declined among public and private high school students, but light smoking increased, according to a national survey.

2 Aug 2011

Science magazine special section examines world's population growth

The current issue of Science magazine features a special section that explores issues surrounding population growth, "many of which continue to split demographers," according to the section's introduction.

2 Aug 2011

Ensign acquires Lakeland Hills Independent & Assisted Living Community

The Ensign Group, Inc., the parent company of the Ensign group of skilled nursing, rehabilitative care services, hospice care and assisted living companies, announced today that it has acquired Lakeland Hills Independent & Assisted Living Community, a 167-unit assisted and independent living facility in Dallas, Texas. The asset acquisition was effective on Monday, August 1, 2011.

2 Aug 2011

HHS announces new guidelines for women's preventive services

The rule includes everything from distribution of birth control pills to administration of breast exams. Ultimately, women will no longer pay out of pocket for preventive services. However, Politico reports that the Department of Health and Human Services may include a "conscience clause" in the regulation.

2 Aug 2011

New York Times examines maternal mortality in Uganda

"Half of the 340,000 deaths of women from pregnancy-related causes each year occur in Africa, almost all in anonymity," the New York Times writes in an article profiling several cases of women who have died during childbirth in Ugandan hospitals.

2 Aug 2011

Florida stands out among states with refusal to accept federal health law funding

The New York Times reports on strict stand by Florida governor to avoid HHS money. Meanwhile, other news outlets look at funding for insurance co-ops, efforts to set up health exchanges, and reviews of insurance premium increases.

2 Aug 2011

Illinois EPA declares August 1 as air pollution action day for Chicago

In addition to the "Monday back-to-work blues" trouble breathing, fatigue, headaches and congestion may be what many Chicagoans experience today due to toxic air quality. The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency has declared an air pollution action day for today, August 1, for the greater Chicago metropolitan area.

2 Aug 2011

Key Mass. hospital-doctor group still looking to fulfill pledge on reducing insurance premiums

Partners HealthCare System vowed to pay $40 million to help reduce insurance costs for small businesses, the Boston Globe reports. Also, California group announces plans for an ACO and Minnesota Public Radio examines how cost cutting efforts will affect health care.

2 Aug 2011

PEPFAR will continue to lead HIV/AIDS fight

With recent scientific advancements in HIV prevention "transforming the way we think about AIDS," PEPFAR's "task is to translate new science into policy to inform programs," Ambassador Eric Goosby, the U.S. global aids coordinator, writes in a post on the State Department's "DipNote" blog.

2 Aug 2011

UNOS policy change reduces disparities in kidney transplants for African-Americans

A national transplant policy change designed to give African-American patients greater access to donor kidneys has sliced in half the racial disparities that have long characterized the allocation of lifesaving organs, new Johns Hopkins research suggests.

2 Aug 2011

Officials in Nigerian state say parents who refuse polio vaccination for children could be prosecuted

"Officials in Nigeria's northern Kano state say parents who refuse to have their children vaccinated against polio may be prosecuted," VOA News reports.

2 Aug 2011

ADA releases new position paper, 'Nutrition Intervention in the Treatment of Eating Disorders'

As one of the most complicated sets of illnesses to treat, eating disorders have mental health, as well as medical and nutritional, aspects. While treatment by a multidisciplinary health-care team is considered the best practice, there is considerable debate over how to most effectively treat eating disorders and who should be on a treatment team.

2 Aug 2011

Development Assistance Committee review suggests more coordination in U.S. foreign aid program

"The U.S. should improve coordination among its more than two dozen government departments to promote coherence in its multibillion-dollar foreign aid program and avoid duplication," according to a peer review from the Development Assistance Committee (DAC) of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the Guardian reports.

2 Aug 2011

FDA warns U.S. consumers not to use Evital emergency birth control medicine

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is warning U.S. consumers not to use the emergency birth control medicine labeled as Evital.

2 Aug 2011

PCMA President releases statement on new GAO report

Pharmaceutical Care Management Association (PCMA) President and CEO Mark Merritt released the following statement today on a new Government Accountability Office (GAO) report, "Medicare Part D Formularies: CMS Conducts Oversight of Mid-Year Changes; Most Mid-Year Changes Were Enhancements":

2 Aug 2011

Obama, Congressional leaders strike debt-limit deal

The agreement, which has the support of House and Senate Democratic and Republican leaders, must now win the approval of rank-and-file members. Within the agreed-upon framework, the second wave of cuts could touch payments to Medicare providers, but beneficiaries would not be hit. Also, programs for the poor, such as Medicaid, would be exempted.

2 Aug 2011

HHS reviewing Florida's plans for Medicaid; Iowa hospital system taking the brunt of Medicaid growth

Officials from Florida and the federal government are working on the state's plans to move all Medicaid enrollees to managed care plans. Meanwhile, Iowa is planning changes to its Medicaid program that could impact the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics. And a Medicaid provider in Georgia finds anomalies in payments.

2 Aug 2011

Exploring the debt deal's repercussions

Politico asks if the agreement will muddy the Medicare waters. Meanwhile, USA Today examines the political damage that it may ultimately cause.

2 Aug 2011

Cost/benefit analysis shows net savings for obesity and eating disorders

Teaching middle-school children about nutrition and exercise and encouraging them to watch less TV can save the health care system a substantial amount of money, suggests an economic analysis from Children's Hospital Boston and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

2 Aug 2011

Manual of Clinical Microbiology now available as a digital edition

ASM Press announces the availability of the newest edition of its authoritative reference for clinical laboratory professionals. The Manual of Clinical Microbiology, 10th edition, is available in both print and, for the first time, a digital edition.

2 Aug 2011