Medical News

RSS

Several states consider tobacco tax increases to fund health care programs, address budget deficits

Several states have sought to increase their tobacco taxes to fund health care programs and address budget deficits, but efforts to increase tobacco taxes in some cases have prevented the passage of health care proposals, the New York Times reports.

21 Apr 2008

HHS appeals decision that requires release of Medicare physician claims data

HHS last week in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia filed an appeal of an August 2007 court decision that requires the department to release Medicare claims data on more than 40 million beneficiaries and 700,000 physicians, the Los Angeles Times reports (Alonso-Zaldivar, Los Angeles Times, 4/19).

21 Apr 2008

New York Times examines increasing prices of specialty drugs distributed exclusively by pharmacy benefit managers

The New York Times on Saturday examined how pharmacy benefit managers in recent years "have built lucrative side businesses ... acting as exclusive or semi-exclusive distributors of expensive specialty drugs."

21 Apr 2008

Maine Gov. Baldacci signs legislation that will increase taxes to fund health program

Maine Gov. John Baldacci (D) on Wednesday signed into law a bill that increases taxes and fees on beer, wine and soda manufacturers to fund the Dirigo Health program, the Blethen Maine News Service/Portland Press Herald reports.

21 Apr 2008

South Carolina House to consider bill that would eliminate requirement to inform school officials of students' HIV-positive status

The South Carolina House this week is scheduled to consider a bill (SB 970) that would eliminate a state law that requires the Department of Health and Environmental Control to notify school district superintendents and nurses if students test HIV-positive, the Columbia State reports.

21 Apr 2008

Daily Star examines antiretroviral access in Bangladesh

Bangladesh's Daily Star on Friday examined how most people living with HIV/AIDS in the country do not have access to antiretroviral drugs. According to the Star, the country's Essential Drugs Company does not manufacture or provide antiretrovirals to Bangladesh's only infectious diseases hospital because of the drugs' high cost.

21 Apr 2008

Commitment to conducting more basic research in search for HIV/AIDS vaccine 'prudent,' editorial says

The cancellation last fall of a Merck HIV/AIDS vaccine trial was "branded as a 'catastrophe' by one scientist and as setting the race for a cure 'back to square one' by others," a Washington Post editorial says, adding, "The hyperbole is understandable, but some perspective is in order."

21 Apr 2008

HHS Secretary Leavitt meets with health officials in Vietnam to discuss health issues, including HIV/AIDS

HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt on Thursday met with health officials in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, to discuss health issues, including HIV/AIDS, Thanhnien News reports.

21 Apr 2008

Disabled people in Botswana largely neglected in HIV/AIDS efforts

Disabled people in Botswana have been largely excluded from the country's HIV/AIDS efforts, disability advocates said at a recent two-day workshop, Botswana's Mmegi reports.

21 Apr 2008

Cancer could return unless stored ovarian tissue undergoes adequate testing before re-implantation

Cancer patients who have been successfully treated for their disease face the prospect of its return if stored ovarian (or testicular) tissue is transplanted back into their bodies without adequate checks, according to researchers at two university hospitals in Israel.

21 Apr 2008

Chemotherapy causes delayed severe neural damage

Cancer treatment with chemotherapeutic agents is often associated with delayed adverse neurological consequences - an occurrence often referred to as "chemobrain" - that may compromise the quality of life of a proportion of cancer survivors.

21 Apr 2008

Managing the care of breast cancer in patients 80 years of age and older

According to researchers at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center, mammography, the gold-standard for breast cancer screening and early detection, has shown to significantly reduce the risk of being diagnosed with advanced stage breast cancer in women over the age of 80, an age group currently without clear guidelines recommending regular screenings.

21 Apr 2008

Rates of death following coronary artery bypass graft surgery decline since 1997

Rates of death following coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery have declined since 1997 while the number of procedures performed has decreased, according to a report in the April issue of Archives of Surgery.

21 Apr 2008

Angiotech to suspend Vascular Wrap clinical trials

Angiotech Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has announced that it has elected to suspend enrolment in its U.S. and EU human clinical trials for its Vascular Wrap product candidate in patients undergoing surgery for hemodialysis access, pending a safety review to evaluate an imbalance of infections that have been observed between the two study groups.

21 Apr 2008

Theranostics Health to commercialize microdissection technology from NIH

Theranostics Health announced that it has received an exclusive license from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to commercialize microdissection including Laser Capture Microdissection (LCM) combined with protein analysis for cancer diagnostics and companion diagnostics.

21 Apr 2008

MaxCyte introduces large scale transfection technology - accelerates cell-based assay development

MaxCyte has announced the introduction of its ITF Inline Transfection System, a validated platform for preparative transfection, based on unique flow electroporation technology.

21 Apr 2008

Scalp or neck melanomas most dangerous

People with scalp or neck melanomas die at nearly twice the rate of people with melanoma elsewhere on the body, including the face or ears, researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill have found.

21 Apr 2008

Migraine exacerbates skin sensitivity or pain

People with migraine are more likely to experience exacerbated skin sensitivity or pain after non-painful daily activities such as rubbing one's head, combing one's hair and wearing necklaces or earrings, compared to people with other types of headache, according to a study published in the April 22, 2008, issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

21 Apr 2008

Number of general surgeons in the U.S. declines

The number of general surgeons per 100,000 Americans has declined by more than 25 percent during the past 25 years, according to a report in the April issue of Archives of Surgery.

21 Apr 2008

Patients arriving at hospitals in daytime hours get faster, better care compared to off hours

Patients hospitalized with heart attacks tend to get faster and more comprehensive care if they arrive during daytime hours, according to a report in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.

21 Apr 2008

Medical News

Several states consider tobacco tax increases to fund health care programs, address budget deficits

HHS appeals decision that requires release of Medicare physician claims data

New York Times examines increasing prices of specialty drugs distributed exclusively by pharmacy benefit managers

Maine Gov. Baldacci signs legislation that will increase taxes to fund health program

South Carolina House to consider bill that would eliminate requirement to inform school officials of students' HIV-positive status

Daily Star examines antiretroviral access in Bangladesh

Commitment to conducting more basic research in search for HIV/AIDS vaccine 'prudent,' editorial says

HHS Secretary Leavitt meets with health officials in Vietnam to discuss health issues, including HIV/AIDS

Disabled people in Botswana largely neglected in HIV/AIDS efforts

Cancer could return unless stored ovarian tissue undergoes adequate testing before re-implantation

Chemotherapy causes delayed severe neural damage

Managing the care of breast cancer in patients 80 years of age and older

Rates of death following coronary artery bypass graft surgery decline since 1997

Angiotech to suspend Vascular Wrap clinical trials

Theranostics Health to commercialize microdissection technology from NIH

MaxCyte introduces large scale transfection technology - accelerates cell-based assay development

Scalp or neck melanomas most dangerous

Migraine exacerbates skin sensitivity or pain

Number of general surgeons in the U.S. declines

Patients arriving at hospitals in daytime hours get faster, better care compared to off hours

Clue's CEO Rhiannon White on the Future of Femtech and PCOS

Freezing Point Osmometry in Life Science Applications

Precision in every drop: Inside Hamilton’s syringe technology

Latest News