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Adults important in reducing tobacco use among young people

A clear commitment from adults against the use of tobacco is expected by their children as they grow up, and it can prevent teenagers from starting to smoke or use snuff. This is shown in current research from Umea University in Sweden.

5 May 2009

Tea may be new treatment for type-2 diabetics

The researchers have harvested the ingredients for the tea in Africa, totalling approximately fifty kilos of leaves and three hundred kilos of fruit from the wild nature of Nigeria. Afterwards the tea has been produced exactly as local healers would do so. The recipe is quite simple: boil the leaves, young stalks and fruit and filter the liquid.

5 May 2009

Unique electronic strategy alerts physicians to latest clinical information on H1N1 flu

History was made at 2:30 p.m. (EDT) on Wednesday, April 29, when more than 3,000 physicians in Indianapolis were sent a broadcast alert on swine flu (H1N1 virus) from the Marion County Health Department. The message was of critical importance to patient care; history was made in the way it was transmitted and received.

5 May 2009

Researchers target telomeres to attack tumors

Hoping to develop more effective long-term attacks on cancer, researchers at the Indiana University School of Medicine are conducting the first human tests of a breast cancer drug regimen that includes a compound meant to force cancer cells to grow old and die.

5 May 2009

Potential molecular target for new schizophrenia treatments

A study on schizophrenia has implicated machinery that maintains the flow of potassium in cells and revealed a potential molecular target for new treatments. Expression of a previously unknown form of a key such potassium channel was found to be 2.5 fold higher than normal in the brain memory hub of people with the chronic mental illness and linked to a hotspot of genetic variation.

5 May 2009

Small molecules might block mutant protein production in Huntington's disease

Molecules that selectively interfere with protein production can stop human cells from making the abnormal molecules that cause Huntington's disease, researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have found.

5 May 2009

Zinc supplementation can be ineffective in the treatment of diarrhea

Zinc supplementation can be ineffective in the treatment of diarrhea. A randomised controlled trial published in the open access journal BMC Medicine has shown that supplementation with either zinc or zinc and copper is no more effective than placebo.

5 May 2009

Advocates express concern over Brazilian State's proposed law requiring identification of HIV-positive people

Recent draft legislation that would require the state government in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, to publish an online list of HIV-positive people has spurred concern among some HIV/AIDS advocates in the country, who contend that such action could be detrimental and discriminatory, London's Guardian reports.

5 May 2009

CMS announces series of proposed regulations, including payment cuts

CMS last week announced a series of proposed regulations, including a proposal to reduce Medicare payments for inpatient hospital care by 0.5% in fiscal year 2010, CQ HealthBeat reports. The agency said the proposed cut primarily is the result of adjustments for excessive payments to hospitals in past years.

5 May 2009

Arizona agreement aims to extend PTSD treatment to Navajo nation

The Navajo Area Indian Health Service and the Northern Arizona Veterans Affairs Health Care System recently signed an agreement that aims to improve access to post-traumatic stress disorder treatment for war veterans, the Farmington Daily Times reports.

5 May 2009

Black women in Virginia more likely than others to experience infant mortality

Black women in Virginia are two-and-a-half times more likely than women of other races to experience infant mortality, according to the state Department of Health, the Newport News Daily Press reports.

5 May 2009

Utah hospitals significantly affected by Medicaid reimbursement cuts

Hospital officials in Utah say that recent cuts to Medicaid reimbursement rates were much steeper than anticipated and that they might be forced to offset costs by increasing fees on insured patients or scaling back on charity care, the Salt Lake Tribune reports. Hospitals are facing a nearly 25% cut in Medicaid reimbursement beginning July 1.

5 May 2009

Chrysler deal could jeopardize retiree health benefits if restructured company does not return to profitability

United Auto Workers "appears to be enjoying relative safety in helping steer the course of the [Chrysler Group] bankruptcy," but if the company does not survive post-bankruptcy, UAW's stake in the restructured company "could be worthless," the New York Times reports.

5 May 2009

Competition among pharmacies could spur change in industry

The competition among pharmacy retailers such as Walgreen and Wal-Mart "to create more efficient business plans for pricing and selling prescription drugs has the potential to spur change across the pharmacy industry," the Wall Street Journal reports.

5 May 2009

U.S. 'investing every resource necessary' to address H1N1 flu emergency, Obama says

President Obama on Saturday during his weekly radio and Internet address said that his administration is working to address the recent public health emergency involving the 2009 H1N1 influenza virus, also known as swine flu, The Hill reports.

5 May 2009

Few hospitals have adopted a no-cost electronic health records system offered by VA

Few U.S. hospitals have taken advantage of a no-cost, open-source electronic health records system developed by the Veterans Health Administration, the Boston Globe reports (Wangsness, Boston Globe, 5/4).

5 May 2009

CMS announces series of proposed regulations, including payment cuts

5 May 2009

Social security benefits likely will not increase in 2010, would have 'major implications' on Medicare Parts B, D

The Obama administration and the Congressional Budget Office have indicated that Social Security beneficiaries will not receive a cost-of-living increase in 2010 or 2011, which would have "major implications for Medicare," the New York Times reports.

5 May 2009

Kaiser Health News/Philadelphia Inquirer examines proposal that would allow people ages 55 to 64 to buy into Medicare

Kaiser Health News/Philadelphia Inquirer on Monday examined a plan being touted by Senate Finance Committee Chair Max Baucus (D-Mont.) that would allow people ages 55 to 64 to buy into Medicare. The plan would target people who purchase insurance on the individual market or have no insurance because of unemployment.

5 May 2009

World Bank HIV/AIDS programs less effective than its other health programs, report finds

World Bank programs aimed at fighting HIV/AIDS, particularly in Africa, are less effective overall than World Bank programs aimed at addressing other health and development issues, according to a report released Thursday by the organization's Independent Evaluation Group, the New York Times reports.

5 May 2009

Medical News

Adults important in reducing tobacco use among young people

Tea may be new treatment for type-2 diabetics

Unique electronic strategy alerts physicians to latest clinical information on H1N1 flu

Researchers target telomeres to attack tumors

Potential molecular target for new schizophrenia treatments

Small molecules might block mutant protein production in Huntington's disease

Zinc supplementation can be ineffective in the treatment of diarrhea

Advocates express concern over Brazilian State's proposed law requiring identification of HIV-positive people

CMS announces series of proposed regulations, including payment cuts

Arizona agreement aims to extend PTSD treatment to Navajo nation

Black women in Virginia more likely than others to experience infant mortality

Utah hospitals significantly affected by Medicaid reimbursement cuts

Chrysler deal could jeopardize retiree health benefits if restructured company does not return to profitability

Competition among pharmacies could spur change in industry

U.S. 'investing every resource necessary' to address H1N1 flu emergency, Obama says

Few hospitals have adopted a no-cost electronic health records system offered by VA

CMS announces series of proposed regulations, including payment cuts

Social security benefits likely will not increase in 2010, would have 'major implications' on Medicare Parts B, D

Kaiser Health News/Philadelphia Inquirer examines proposal that would allow people ages 55 to 64 to buy into Medicare

World Bank HIV/AIDS programs less effective than its other health programs, report finds

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